Out of the Way
by Sardixiis
Summary: Ever since her mom had become Secretary of State Stevie had messed up time and time again. Now, even though she had the best intentions, she's screwed up one more time. She'd wanted to stop causing her parents problems. Instead she hands them the biggest one yet, and this time it could cost her her life.
1. Chapter 1 - Words Remembered

**Out of the Way**

Chapter One – Words Remembered

 _"Get out of your mother's way."_

Her father's words might as well have been written on her ceiling for all the good staring at it was doing toward helping her forget them. Stevie rolled over onto her side and pulled her blankets tighter around her. She just couldn't get the words out of her head, and the worst part was her father was actually right. Why couldn't she just get out of her mom's way for once? Ever since her mom had become Secretary of State, her biggest domestic problems had come from Stevie. First the protest, then dropping out of school, arguing about her mom's past, dating her boss, and now dating Harrison and the drug mess that had brought with it. She'd just caused problem after problem for her mom.

Stevie sighed. What was she supposed to do? It wasn't like she meant to cause her mom problems. She just couldn't seem to do anything right recently.

Well, if that was the case maybe she should take her father's advice and get out of her mom's way. Literally. The problem was she didn't exactly have anywhere to go. She didn't have the money to go anywhere either. That was why she was living at home after all. Stevie couldn't help gritting her teeth in frustration. There had to be some way. Some way to stop screwing up and get this to work.

Maybe there was…

Excited, she nearly launched herself out of bed. After dropping down at her desk she booted up her computer. The best way to do as her dad asked was to get as far away as possible. With a little bit of research and some luck she might actually be able to pull it off.

O . o . O . o . O

Alison stood frozen outside her sister's bedroom. None of them had seen Stevie much lately. Ever since the day their mom had been made temporary president Stevie had seemed to be staying away from them. She left earlier than their mother in the morning and often times returned later than her. Occasionally she would eat dinner with them, but more often than not she'd claim she wasn't hungry or had already eaten and retreat up to her room. It didn't make any sense, and now here Stevie was, _packing_. Was her sister moving out again? Her father and Stevie had argued sure, but Alison didn't think that was a reason to send Stevie running. At least Alison hoped not. She would miss her sister terribly if Stevie left. Having her sister there to talk to was always reassuring. Stevie was the one Alison always felt comfortable talking to, both about her life in general and about the challenges their mother's job brought to their lives. She couldn't just leave!

"Where are you going?"

The question came out more strained than Alison intended, but she didn't really care.

Stevie's head shot up at the sound of her sister's voice. She hadn't known Alison was even home. Nobody was supposed to be home. The house being empty was the exact reason why she was packing at that moment. She was scheduled to leave for a mission trip to Africa tomorrow. Not only would she be helping in one of the villages, she was going as an advisor for the microloan program. Hopefully with her help the villagers would be better prepared and more self-sufficient in the future. She had a passport, and her travel would be covered by the company in charge. The timing was perfect. The trip would solve her problem with getting out of the way, and she might actually be able to do some good too. She hadn't told anyone about her plans, and she had no intention of doing so. But now Ali…

"I just… have to get away for a little while."

Alison's face creased, and she took a step into the room. She looked like she would start crying at any second.

"You weren't going to tell any of us, were you? You were just going to leave without saying anything."

"Ali…"

"You were! You were just going to slip away!"

The absolute horror on Alison's face nearly destroyed Stevie, but she knew she had to make her sister understand. If she didn't Alison might say something to their parents, which was definitely not what Stevie wanted. She'd caused enough problems for her parents lately. They didn't need to know about this. She would handle it by herself and prevent making more problems. Stevie grabbed Alison's wrist and tugged her toward her bed, hoping she could calm her sister down.

"Ali, Mom and Dad have enough going on right now. I'm just trying to make things easier for them."

Alison scanned Stevie's face, trying to read everything there.

"This is because of your argument with Dad, isn't it?"

She didn't really need an answer to that question. She knew she was right.

"Ali this has nothing…"

"Yes it does! I don't have any idea what Dad said that's pushed you to this, but don't you think you're overreacting? He didn't mean anything he might have said! He was angry and worried about Mom, and we were all locked in that basement safe house. Of course he wasn't thinking straight! Just talk to him! You'll see."

"I don't need to talk to him, Alison. He was right. I have to try and make up for everything that I've done."

She brushed back Alison's hair and offered her the best smile she could manage. It wasn't much and it didn't look like it reassured Alison at all.

"But…"

"Please understand, Ali. This really is what's best."

Alison had to trust that her sister was right about that, but she still wasn't totally sure she believed it. No matter what she believed she knew there was no way she'd be able to change her sister's mind. Stubbornness was one trait that definitely ran through the entire family.

"How long are you going to be gone?" Alison asked.

"A few weeks," Stevie answered, purposefully making it sound like a short period of time.

"What about school? You're not dropping out again, are you?"

Stevie couldn't help rolling her eyes.

"No. I've already talked to my professors. I've got it covered. This isn't going to cause any problems with my semester."

At least not any problems that would show up on her transcripts. She might have to take an incomplete if she couldn't catch up, but that was relatively unlikely. Her professors knew what she was doing and most of them were willing to work with her since her trip was for a good cause and sort of related to her job. It wasn't like she was currently taking that many classes anyway.

"Oh. Good," Ali said. Then a wry, conspiratorial smile flashed across her face. "You don't want me to tell Mom and Dad about this, do you?"

A smile split Stevie's face as well. Everything was back on track now that Alison was on board. She could count on her sister to keep her mouth shut about this.

"Not if they don't ask about it. They don't need to know."

She wasn't going to ask Alison to outright lie to their parents. Even Stevie knew she wouldn't truly be able to do that. A little bit of deception by omission would do the trick for long enough though.

"You don't think they'll approve," Alison threw back.

"I think they'll try to convince me to stay, and I'm leaving for a little while for their sake."

"Oookay," Alison replied, drawing the word out longer than necessary. "Want me to help you pack?"

Stevie almost let out a sigh of relief that Alison had let the topic of the trip go. While she didn't want to lie to her sister, she couldn't tell her where she was going. If she did, Alison would be able to tell their parents, and despite what she'd said Stevie didn't really believe her parents would totally approve of her trip. But they wanted her out of the way. Since she couldn't simply get out of the way by being a normal kid – who could when you were the child of a huge public figure? – physically getting out was the next best option.

"Don't worry about it. I'm almost done."

"Okay."

Alison stood and wrapped her sister in a tight hug. She was definitely going to miss Stevie.

"Come back soon, okay?"

"You bet," Stevie promised.

Alison took one last glance back at Stevie before she left the room. Once she was gone Stevie breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't time to relax though. Alison had already caught her packing, and Stevie couldn't let that happen with anyone else. She had to finish up fast and get her suitcase put away before the rest of the family got home. Tomorrow, after everyone left for school and work, Stevie would take off. Maybe while she was gone she would figure out how to live with the constant media presence that came with her mother's job. If she could figure that out she could actually do what her father wanted while still staying nearby. Her mother had enough problems. Stevie didn't want to be one of them, but she still had to live her own life. This was the right choice.

* * *

 _Author's Note: This story is based off Henry's line from the Season 2 premiere. After I heard it I couldn't help coming up with something like this because it just stuck with me. I know this chapter isn't too excited, and it was rather hard to write too, but I promise the story picks up rather quickly in the next two chapters. This story just took on a life of its own after I managed to get through this whole set up bit._


	2. Chapter 2 - Give it Some Space

Chapter Two – Give it Some Space

For once Elizabeth got home from the office at a reasonable hour and found her family just getting ready for dinner. A smile flashed across her face. She was actually going to get to eat a whole meal with them. She moved to Henry's side and kissed his cheek. Henry glanced up from his cooking long enough to wrap an arm around Elizabeth and place a kiss on her cheek as well.

"Welcome home, babe. You hungry?"

"Ugh, starving," she replied as she leaned against his side.

"Good. Dinner's almost ready."

Her eyes flicked over the room, finding the table set but empty.

"Where are the kids?"

"Alison is upstairs doing homework," Henry said and then waved his spatula toward the living room. "And Jason is on the couch, listening to music and oblivious to the world."

Elizabeth's eyes lit up excitedly, reminding Henry of a giddy little girl about to pull a prank.

"Can I throw something at him?"

That appeared to be a totally accurate description. Henry grinned at her.

"Fine by me. It might get his lazy butt up so he can help with dinner."

Elizabeth chuckled and started soaking a clean dish rag with cold water. Jason's response when she dropped it on his face was going to be priceless. She crept toward him, careful to stay where he wouldn't be likely to notice her. When she got close enough she gently lobbed the cloth over the back of the couch. A moment later she was rewarded. Jason yelped, jerked off the couch, and threw the dish rag halfway across the room. Elizabeth burst into laughter, immediately giving herself away.

"Mom! What the hell?!"

"Sorry, Jason," she told him. She'd managed to pull herself together momentarily, but it didn't last and she burst into laughter again. "No, I'm actually not. It was just too perfect. I couldn't help myself."

"Really, Mom? Not cool," Jason grumbled as he swiped an arm across his face to get rid of the water.

He grabbed the dish rag from the floor and chucked it back at his mother's face. She easily caught the rag and dropped it back in the sink with a laugh. Jason turned his glare from his mom to his dad. Henry simply laughed at him.

"Don't look at me. I didn't have anything to do with that."

"Sure you didn't," Jason said with a roll of his eyes.

He dropped down in his chair at the table and continued to glare at them. Elizabeth and Henry simply ignored him. Their children glared at them so often they could ignore it pretty well by this point in their lives.

"What about Stevie?" Elizabeth asked as she turned back to Henry.

"She's not here."

"Again?"

Elizabeth hadn't seen Stevie in a week. At first she'd just thought she'd been constantly missing her daughter, but that wasn't the case. Henry had said Stevie hadn't been home at all either. At least not at any time when he'd been home. It wasn't very likely that Stevie was coming home while managing to completely miss both of them. Her absence was starting to worry Elizabeth.

"Have you heard from her, Henry?"

Henry paused and looked at her. He was worried about Stevie too, but they'd both just assumed she needed some space.

"No. She hasn't answered any of my calls or texts."

"Mine either," Elizabeth admitted. She glanced over at her son. "Jason?"

"What? Don't look at me. It's not like I have any reason to want to talk to her."

"Talk to who?" Alison asked as she came downstairs.

"Stevie. Have you heard anything from her, Noodle?" Elizabeth questioned worriedly.

Alison's forehead wrinkled.

"No. She left a week ago."

Alison's words sent the kitchen into chaos.

"What?!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

"What do you mean she left?" Henry added, nearly speaking over his wife.

Alison looked from one parent to the other, thoroughly confused. Why were they so surprised? Her sister hadn't been home in a week. How had they not realized Stevie was gone?

"I saw her packing last week," she explained. "She said she was going away for a little while."

"Did she say where?" Elizabeth asked.

Her mother sounded so incredulous that Alison wished she had information for her. She didn't though. Stevie hadn't told her anything, and based on her parents' responses she could sort of see why. They were seriously over-reacting.

"No. She just said she'd be back in a few weeks," Alison replied with a shrug.

"Have you heard from her at all?"

"I've sent her a few texts but haven't heard anything back yet."

Despite her mother's obvious concern, Alison wasn't worried at all. She had talked to Stevie before she'd left and had no reason to believe that what her sister had told her was anything but the truth. Stevie would be back eventually. There was no reason to worry about her.

"Henry…"

"It's fine," Henry assured Elizabeth.

He squeezed her arm and kissed her lovingly. She ran her hand over Henry's chest and met his gaze, her own still filled with concern. His gaze was an open book to her. They would talk about this later. Everything would be fine. For the moment she had to let this discussion about Stevie go. With a tiny nod of her head she did that and headed for the table.

"Alright, guys. Let's eat," she said.

O . o . O . o . O

"Should we be worried?" Elizabeth asked as she closed her bedroom door behind her.

Henry released a long drawn out breath as he sat down on the bed. That was a very good question. Should they be worried about the fact that nobody had heard from their daughter in the last week?

"No. I'm sure everything is fine."

It was an incredibly lame attempt to reassure both of them.

"Right? She's probably just staying with her friends again. Trying to avoid us because she hates us both after we had her drug tested."

"She doesn't hate us. She just… Okay, she probably hates us."

Elizabeth started pacing around the room which definitely didn't help Henry's nerves.

"I know! She totally hates us. That's why she left." She suddenly stopped and stared at him, eyes wide. "Oh my god. You don't think she's using and checked into rehab, do you?"

It would explain why nobody had managed to get in contact with her over the last week.

"What?" Henry shot to his feet and grabbed her arms. If he hadn't been panicked before he definitely was now. But they were being completely ridiculous. They were! "No! No, we tested her. She's clean."

"But the hair could have been old, Henry. This could be a new thing, and she's not answering her phone. Not even from Ali! Why else wouldn't she be answering her phone?"

While Elizabeth's reasoning was relatively logical, Henry knew they were both jumping the gun on this. They both needed to back up a few steps and calm down.

"Okay, we really need to stop," Henry told her as he ran his hand up and down her arm.

Elizabeth sighed and visibly relaxed. Part of her had realized that they were probably way over-reacting and going off the deep end but she hadn't been able to accept it until Henry had said the words out loud. It just sounded so much more rational coming from him than it did from her head.

"We do, don't we? We're being ridiculous."

"We are. I doubt she's using, babe. She's just mad at us and that's why she's not answering."

He kissed her, and she nearly melted into him. She'd needed him to be the voice of reason, and now that he had been she felt so much better. Stevie was fine. She was simply being Stevie.

"Thank you. I needed someone to tell me that I was ridiculously over-reacting."

"Well, I'm happy to be that guy. And I'm sure nothing is going on with Stevie. She's taking some time away from us and staying with friends. We have nothing to worry about. We just need to give her some space."

"Right, and if she isn't back in a few weeks like Ali said we'll worry about it then."

"Right," Henry confirmed. "Now come here."

He tugged on her wrist, pulling her gently toward the bed. An amused smile danced across her face. The twinkling in her eyes told him she knew exactly what he was trying to do. He sat down on the bed and her hands immediately came to rest on his shoulders, her fingers trailing up his neck.

"Trying to distract me, are you?"

Her voice held a sultry tinge to it that made Henry grin.

"Is it working?"

"I don't know. You tell me," she murmured as she slid onto the bed and settled herself across his lap.

Henry had definitely managed to distract her quite well. He was always good at that type of distraction.


	3. Chapter 3 - Problems Arise

Chapter Three – Problems Arise

Quiet days at the officer were meant to be enjoyed, and Elizabeth McCord was taking full advantage of a mundane morning. There was nothing pressing on her schedule except for a meeting at the White House that afternoon. Maybe she would call Henry and try to set up lunch. She rarely had the opportunity, and it would be a great addition to the day. Just as she was about to pick up the phone to call him Nadine walked in. With one look at her chief of staff's face Elizabeth knew she wasn't going to like whatever Nadine had to say.

"Ma'am, we have a problem."

Elizabeth sighed and set the phone back down in the cradle.

"Of course we do. When does a day go by when we don't have a problem?" she asked before leaning back in her chair and waving Nadine forward.

"You're going to want to come with me."

"Why do I not like the sound of that?"

Probably because whenever those words were involved a mere problem tended to be upgraded to a much bigger problem. Fantastic.

She followed Nadine out of her office and into the conference room. The rest of her staff was already there. When she walked in their eyes all flicked toward her, clearly worried. The video screen at the front of the room was set up, and Jay stood nervously next to the laptop connected to it. This was not some minor emergency. She could tell that just from looking at her staff.

"You have something for me, Jay?"

"Yes, Ma'am, and you're not going to like it."

"Of course I'm not." She took a seat and slid her glasses on. "Okay. Show me."

"The US embassy in Nigeria received this video this morning. Apparently it was sent by an African rebel group. They've taken hostages and are demanding payment from the United States for their release," Jay explained.

"Of course they are, because the United States government has a long history of paying ransoms," Elizabeth grumbled sarcastically.

She understood why everyone looked so concerned now. Hostage situations didn't usually bode well for the hostages. Rescue missions were difficult and casualties tended to be high. If the situation and environment were bad enough a military operation may not even be possible no matter how many lives were in the balance. After taking a deep breath to prepare herself Elizabeth nodded to Jay.

"Okay, show me."

Jay nodded and started the video. Everyone's eyes were immediately glued to the screen as the rebel leader began speaking. It was the usual demand. If three million dollars wasn't wired to them in the next three days they would start killing hostages. Three days didn't give her a lot of time to work, if there was even something she could do. The image on screen changed slightly, revealing a group of armed men. Heavily armed men. The numbers alone didn't bode well, and the high level weaponry would cause just as many challenges. Elizabeth ran her fingers along her jaw as she took in the details. Eight visible men plus the leader. Automatic weapons. An enclosed location in Nigeria. And the hostages… Her eyes swept the background where a group of people were huddled. They were dirty, bruised, and completely terrified. That was to be expect-

Elizabeth's eyes widened in shock and she jumped to her feet, slamming her palm down on the table.

"Rewind it!" she demanded.

"I'm sorry?" Jay asked as he paused the video.

"Rewind it to when they panned over the rebels and hostages."

"Ma'am?" Blake asked, confused about why she sounded so frantic.

The rest of the staff didn't understand either. Apparently she'd seen something that they hadn't. What it could be that could make her this worked up none of them had any idea.

Elizabeth simply ignored Blake and focused all of her attention on the screen. It wasn't possible. She had to have been seeing things.

"Play it again," she demanded.

"O-of course, Ma'am," Jay replied before backing up the video and doing what she'd asked.

Elizabeth kept her eyes glued to the right hand edge of the screen. Nothing else mattered. Any minute the hostage that had been visible there for only a moment before the image had returned to the rebel leader would come into view. She only had to see the hostage again for a second before she knew. Her heart stopped and ice filled her. Even as the image passed off screen Elizabeth could still see the terrified young face. It was about all she could see. That image… That image would be burned into her mind forever.

"Oh my god."

She didn't even hear herself speak. This couldn't be happening. It _couldn't_. Yet she had to be sure. Four long strides got her to the phone and she dialed with shaking hands.

"What's going on? What did I miss?" Daisy asked as she watched her boss' face go white.

"I have no idea," Matt answered.

Both of them turned to Blake and Nadine but only received shrugs and a shake of the head in response. Something had triggered the Secretary's response, but none of them knew what. There hadn't been anything unusual that they had seen.

"The Bureau of Consular Affairs please."

Everyone started at Elizabeth's words. The video had been passed along to them from the Office of Consular Affairs. There wasn't anything else she was going to get from them.

"Ma'am," Jay started but immediately shut his mouth when she held her hand up to silence him.

Elizabeth turned her full attention back to the phone call. Finding out the truth was all she cared about right then and nothing was going to distract her. If she had to throw her staff out of the room she would. This was that important.

"I need all records of recent international travel and passport usage for Stephanie McCord."

"Stephanie?" Matt whispered. "Her mystery daughter?"

"She's not a mystery daughter," Blake corrected. "I thought we covered that already."

"Why is she asking about Stevie?" Daisy asked before Matt and Blake could get into a ridiculous and pointless debate.

She simply couldn't see the connection between Stevie and their current hostage situation. Why would Elizabeth be spending time checking up on her daughter right now? They had more important things to worry about. Like the lives of a large number of hostages.

"Not a clue," Matt grumbled.

"Will you all just stop?" Nadine shot at everyone.

The group fell silent, and their eyes shifted to their boss. She had just set the phone back down and looked even paler than she had before – if that were even possible. Elizabeth rested her hands on the table and bowed her head. She simply couldn't believe what she'd just heard. It was nearly impossible for her to process and worse yet, she didn't know if she wanted to process it.

Two weeks ago Stevie had been on a flight to Africa and her passport had later been registered in Nigeria.

Her heart had recognized Stevie in the video instantly, but her head had insisted that she was being ridiculous. There was no reason her daughter would be in Nigeria. They may not have heard from her in two weeks, but Nigeria? It was too far-fetched to really consider. Now Elizabeth had to do more than consider it.

"This can't be happening."

Elizabeth hadn't even realized she'd spoken aloud. She was so engulfed in horror that she'd basically forgotten where she was. When Blake's hand landed on her shoulder she nearly jumped. Her entire staff knew something wasn't quite right with the Secretary of State, but up close like this Blake could see how lost she truly was. It almost looked like it took her a moment to recognize him.

"Madam Secretary."

"Please tell me this is some horrible, horrible nightmare and I'm going to wake up soon."

Blake was nearly taken aback by her words. This wasn't the Elizabeth McCord that he knew. She didn't simply ignore bad situations; she dealt with them. Hopefully once he reminded her that this – whatever this actually was – was real she would pull herself back together.

"I wish I could do that, Ma'am, but you're already awake."

Elizabeth moved her gaze from Blake to the rest of her staff. They were all watching her with varying levels of concern. She took a deep breath and prepared to say the words she had never expected to say in her life. Once she spoke them out loud the situation would be even more real. It took every ounce of courage to spit them out and face the living hell that was in front of her.

"My daughter is one of the hostages."


	4. Chapter 4 - Pass the Buck

Chapter Four – Pass the Buck

The room remained dead silent after that announcement, and then everyone started talking at once. Elizabeth didn't even try to pay attention to all of the conversations. Her ears were still roaring, making it impossible to even think. She couldn't process more information at the moment. It was hard enough accepting what she'd just learned without adding other people's opinions to it. It was something Matt said that finally snapped her out of her shocked stupor.

"What do you mean your daughter is one of the hostages? Since when is she in Nigeria? And what the hell is she even doing there?"

"I'd like to know the answer to that question myself, Matt," Elizabeth replied. She rubbed at her temples and tried to force her fear for Stevie aside. The only way she could help her daughter was if she focused. There had to be some way out of this mess. She lifted her gaze again and addressed everyone. "Right now that's not important. What is, is getting her and the rest of the hostages home."

Before anyone could start considering a plan Jay put a stop to the whole thing.

"Ma'am, forgive me, but if your daughter is one of the hostages you shouldn't be the one handling the situation. We should pass this along to DoD or someone else. You're too close to it."

Nadine knew full well how the Secretary was going to take that, but Jay was right. She would be too emotionally involved. Saying something would turn Elizabeth's ire toward her, but Nadine knew she had to speak up anyway. It was best for everyone involved.

"Jay has a point, Ma'am."

Elizabeth nearly laughed. Nobody on her staff had struck her as being completely stupid, but Jay and Nadine seemed to be proving her wrong. They couldn't possibly believe she would turn away if her child was involved. This was her family, and they all knew how close she was to her family. Either Jay or Nadine had forgotten that or they had lost their minds. She wasn't going to pass the buck on this one. No chance.

"Are you really trying to convince me to let someone else handle this? Really?"

"Ma'am," Nadine began.

"No," Elizabeth snapped. "This was brought to my office, and that's exactly where it's staying. There isn't anyone more determined than me to get those people home, especially since my daughter's life is in danger. This situation is not being kicked over to anyone else. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am," they all chorused.

There would be no changing Elizabeth McCord's mind once she'd decided something. The truth of the matter was that even emotionally involved Secretary McCord was probably the best person for the job. She had resources few other people had and came up with ideas nobody else would even consider. Given what they were looking at, both of those things could come in rather handy.

"Good. Let's get to work then. Jay, does anyone else have access to this video? Was it sent to anyone besides the consul?"

"Not that I know of, Ma'am, but I will call to confirm that."

"Do that. And make sure that video doesn't get out to anyone. Daisy, the media can't get a hold of it, and I'd prefer they didn't find out about this at all. We all know the first thing they'll do if they find out is search for the names of the hostages."

"You do know how difficult it's going to be to keep them from finding out about a hostage situation involving US citizens and airing everything they can get their hands on, right?" Daisy asked.

"I realize that, but it's absolutely necessary. Stevie's identity as one of the hostages has to remain completely under wraps. If the rebels find out her identity she could be targeted or killed. Understood? Do whatever you have to do to keep my daughter's name and the names of the other hostages out of the press."

"Of course, Ma'am."

"Okay, now… We need more information to work with," Elizabeth mused.

She fell silent for a moment, considering. What tools did they need to find a solution to this? Almost everything really. They didn't have much information at all.

"Nadine," she began. "I need all of the information you can get me on this rebel group. If there's nothing on this group specifically then I need whatever you can find on typical Nigerian rebel groups. I need everything on the compound or where ever it is that they're camped out also. The surrounding area too."

"Of course, Madam Secretary. I'll pull together everything I can find," Nadine promised.

"Everyone else, eat your Wheaties, put your thinking caps on, and do whatever else you have to do because we have to come up with a solution fast. One with the least risk of getting any of those hostages killed."

How the hell they were going to do that Elizabeth had no idea.

O . o . O . o . O

Hours later darkness was starting to fall and Elizabeth McCord felt no closer to getting the eleven missionaries and one microloans intern home. It was so much easier to think of them that way and not actually mention Stevie's name. Locking her daughter away in the recesses of her mind was the only way she could stay focused. Not that focus was really helping. No rescue plan had even seemed feasible so far. If she was being fully honest then no plan had been even remotely feasible. They'd all been desperate shots in the dark that nobody had expected to work.

She set her glasses aside and rubbed at her burning eyes. Dinner had passed a long time ago. While her staff had taken a break, she'd worked non-stop. There was no way she could do anything else. At this point though, she was starting to lose hope. She didn't have any ideas. Not even wild ones. When Blake and Nadine stepped into her office she had a feeling she knew what they wanted, but she didn't see how it was even possible.

"Ma'am, you need to go home," Blake told her. "I've already called a car for you."

It was as she'd expected, and she shook her head at both of them.

"How can I go home when I haven't figured out how to save them yet?"

It would be like abandoning Stevie. The thought nearly closed her throat, and for a moment she couldn't breathe. Thankfully neither Blake nor Nadine seemed to notice. They were too worried about getting her out the door.

"Because you won't do her any good like this. You need to go home, get some rest, and get back at it again tomorrow when you're fresh," Nadine answered.

"She's right, Ma'am," Blake added. "Give your brain a break. You're more likely to think of something that way then you are if you keep pushing non-stop."

"Besides Ma'am, we're all going to make sure we don't have to go to any more funerals. I think we've been to more than enough in the last year."

As ridiculous as it was, that actually calmed Elizabeth. Her entire staff was going to work as hard as they could until they found a solution. That solution simply wasn't going to come tonight. They were right; she needed a break. She was already feeling fuzzy and nearly numb. But…

"I have to figure out how to tell Henry."

How was she even supposed to bring this up to her husband? It would break him just like it was breaking her. She didn't want to bring that kind of pain to him, but this also wasn't something she could hide. They could lose their oldest child. He needed to know.

"I think you have to just come right out and say it, Ma'am," Nadine offered.

Elizabeth laughed.

"Oh sure. "Hi, Henry. I'm home, oh, and our daughter is currently being held hostage in Africa by a group of rebels." That would go over really well."

"I'm sure you'll come up with something."

"Perhaps something a little more delicate," Blake suggested.

"Thanks, Blake," Elizabeth replied dryly.

"You're welcome. Now the car, Ma'am?"

"Right. Just give me a few minutes to grab my things."

"Of course, Ma'am."

* * *

 _Author's Note: I'd tried so hard to keep the main plot of this story a secret with where Stevie was going and all of that. I'm so glad so many of you seemed surprised by the reveal of that plot! I was worried it would be so obvious._


	5. Chapter 5 - Living Hell

Chapter Five – Living Hell

For the entire drive home Elizabeth simply felt numb. Now that she wasn't actively working on the hostage situation she had the time to think about Stevie and what her daughter was going through. Being numb was probably better than being utterly terrified, but she figured the terror was coming. Hopefully it would hold off until she could get Henry alone. She still had no idea what to say to him, but she had even less idea what to say to the kids. She honestly didn't even want to say anything to Alison and Jason. They didn't need to know about this. Of course she was going to have to have a major game face on if she wanted to keep this from them. Her kids could almost always tell when something wasn't quite right. They were just smart enough not to ask most of the time. With how she was feeling at the moment there was no way they wouldn't notice something was wrong. It would be too obvious no matter how hard she tried to hide it. It was late though. Maybe she would get lucky and the kids would already be upstairs.

When her car pulled up to the house Elizabeth took a moment to school her expression and lock thoughts of Stevie away again. It could only do so much, and she still felt like she was going to throw up as she walked in the door. Then she saw Henry sitting at his desk in their office and almost started sobbing on the spot. Thankfully Henry noticed her before she had to say a word.

"Hey, babe. You're home late. Something big's going on at work, huh?"

"Big," she nearly squeaked. "You could say that."

Henry's forehead creased and he stepped toward her. Something was definitely wrong. Elizabeth sounded nearly hysterical.

"Babe?"

"The kids?"

"They're upstairs," Henry told her as he ran his hands up and down her arms to calm her. She looked like she really needed it.

Elizabeth almost immediately sagged into his arms. Henry held her tight, even more concerned now. Her day must have been really bad.

"We need to talk, Henry."

"Okay, but you're kind of scaring me, babe."

"I haven't even started scaring you yet," she returned rather flatly.

That didn't sound good. This wasn't Elizabeth teasing him. She was serious.

"Should we go upstairs? We won't have to worry about the kids walking in on us then."

"That's probably a good idea."

She stepped back, and Henry wrapped an arm around her so he could guide her up the steps. He was trying to stay as calm as he could to keep her level. The last thing he wanted was for her to have a panic attack over whatever was happening. She'd been doing better lately, but she was definitely stressed today. When she was stressed it brought all of her triggers much closer to the surface. He'd be more than happy to help her decompress in whatever way she needed.

Once they'd stepped into their room and closed the door behind them Elizabeth turned to Henry. She needed to start this discussion and say what she had to right now before she lost her nerve.

"Stevie isn't staying with friends," she blurted out.

That was not the type of discussion Henry had been expecting. It did, however, explain why Elizabeth was so out of sorts. None of them had heard anything about Stevie, and the lack of news had been eating at both Elizabeth and Henry. Apparently Elizabeth had gotten some information about Stevie, but it didn't look like she'd learned what she'd been hoping to learn.

"You've heard from her?"

"No. She's in Africa, Henry."

" _Africa?_ What's she doing in Africa?"

"At the moment? Probably wondering if she's going to live beyond the next three days."

Henry almost started laughing. Elizabeth was joking. She had to be. There was no other logical explanation. Seriously? Their daughter, who'd been MIA for two weeks, was in Africa and worried about dying in a few days? No way. This was simply an elaborate prank that Elizabeth had set up to get him. He grinned at her, totally ready to call her out on this ridiculousness when he took in the strained expression on her face. If she'd been kidding she would have caved by this point. She was a fantastic actor in front of global leaders and politicians, but she sucked at it with him. Her expression would give away every joke she played on him far quicker than she wanted. That hadn't happened this time.

Henry's face drained of all color and he nearly collapsed onto the bed.

"Oh my god. You're serious."

A single tear slid down Elizabeth's cheek in response. It made the situation completely real and that much more painful. Henry held out a hand to her, and once she'd taken it pulled her onto the bed with him.

"Tell me everything," he instructed.

His wife nodded, tucked her legs under her, and brushed at her eyes to prevent any more tears from escaping. The instant she lowered her hand Henry took it and her other one into his, trying to provide as much comfort and strength as he could. It was no wonder he'd thought she was teetering on the edge when she'd first walked in the door. She probably was.

"We got a hostage video today from an African rebel group. They took over the main community building in a small village in Nigeria. American mission workers were there helping the villagers. The rebels are demanding a ransom be paid within the next three days or they will start killing their hostages."

"And Stevie's there? You're sure?"

It all just seemed so unreal. There was such a slim possibility that this could ever happen, microscopic really, yet the impossibility of it was that this _was_ happening.

"I saw her in the video, Henry. It was just a brief look, but it was enough. Travel records confirmed she's in Nigeria."

That confirmation was like being run over by a train. At first he couldn't form fully coherent thoughts, and the first one that did form nearly stopped his heart.

"The United States government doesn't pay ransoms. They don't negotiate with terrorists."

Elizabeth looked up at him, her eyes swimming with tears.

"No, they don't."

Those three words sounded like a death sentence. Her face perfectly reflected the utter anguish burning in his heart.

"Henry… I could have to sit there and watch my daughter die."

The second the last word was out of her mouth she shattered. Wrapping her arms around herself, Elizabeth sobbed uncontrollably. Henry shifted further onto the bed and gathered her into his arms. There was nothing that he could tell her. His own heart was screaming, and she was _right_. She could have to watch their child die. Their first born die. Hell, she might even have to make the decision that allowed that to happen. No, no someone else would have to handle that. Nobody would put that decision on her shoulders. It would destroy her! Then again, Stevie's death could destroy them both. In a few days they could be planning a funeral for their daughter.

He nearly lost it then. Before he could fall into complete despair though anger kindled inside of him.

No. No, they were not going to lose their daughter. Not without a fight. The United States might not negotiate, but there were other options. There had to be, and if they were out there Elizabeth would find them. They were not giving up now!

"Elizabeth, look at me. Look at me, babe," Henry said determinedly.

It took a while, but eventually she did as he'd asked. Henry held her face, making sure she was paying full attention and couldn't look away from him.

"We're not giving up. Do you hear me? You're going to find some way to bring her home. I know you are, Elizabeth."

Despite his utter confidence in her, Elizabeth didn't have even a fraction of it in herself. She'd solved so many crises in her time as Secretary of State. None of them had been at this level of magnitude though. At least not personally. This problem mattered more than any of the others had, and in this critical moment she had _nothing_.

"I'm all out of ideas, Henry. Nothing we've thought of is even in the ballpark of feasible, and that metaphor isn't nearly big enough. I'm scared, Henry," she whimpered. "What if I can't find an answer?"

"You'll find one. I know you will."

"But what if I don't?"

"You will. Just give yourself a little time."

He dropped his hands from her face and started rubbing her shoulders and arms. Her entire body was tense, but his ministrations didn't seem to be helping much.

"I don't have a lot of time." Just three days. Three days to come up with a plan and put it in motion quickly enough to save twelve lives. That was hardly any time at all. She could feel the tears coming again and sniffed them back. "This is where you say something really inspiring that triggers some amazing idea in my head."

Henry remained silent, unsure what to say. He couldn't think of anything reassuring let alone inspiring. Maybe she didn't actually need inspiring. Maybe she just needed another reason to keep trying and a fresh breath of air.

"Maybe you just need to look at it from a different angle, babe. "The best solutions are often simple, yet unexpected.""

If there was one thing Elizabeth knew it was when Henry was quoting somebody. He did it often enough that she'd learned to recognize the expression on his face and his tone of voice. That last line was definitely a quote, and a kind of curious one. Simple yet unexpected solutions. Unexpected… Everyone at work thought she constantly did things that were unexpected. Conrad had specifically hired her because she could think outside of the box or at least she could blow the whole damn box up. Maybe Henry was right…

"Who said that?" she asked, fully expecting him to give her the name of some relatively unknown religious scholar.

"A musician actually. It's not just religious scholars that can give good advice."

Elizabeth laughed lightly, which was exactly what he thought she needed. Tension radiated off of her. It was understandable, but it wasn't going to help her in any way. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead.

"For now stop trying to think about it and take a break."

She shifted forward and relaxed against his chest. It wasn't going to be easy to put this down, but she knew he was right. Because of that she would at least try.

O . o . O . o . O

Later that night Elizabeth did actually seem to be relaxed. She was curled comfortably against Henry with his arms wrapped protectively around her. They had both been silent for hours and should have long ago fallen asleep, but Henry knew his wife was awake. Neither of them would be getting much sleep that night.

"Henry?" Elizabeth whispered. Her hesitant voice barely broke the silence, and she almost sounded afraid of saying whatever it was she wanted to say.

"Yeah, babe?" he returned just as quietly.

"We can't tell the kids."

She didn't say anything about what they couldn't tell them or why, but she didn't need to. He understood.

"No. We can't. Even Ali can't know. It's too much."

This was different from Iran. Alison might have been old enough to process that her mother had traveled to a world hot spot, but she definitely couldn't handle the news that her older sister could be killed by terrorists. It was way too much to put on a sixteen year old's shoulders. This news would have to remain secret. Jason and Alison would only be told when it was absolutely necessary. Henry seriously hoped that would only be after Elizabeth had a plan in motion to save the hostages and bring Stevie home. Or, even better, after Stevie was already home.

"Henry… I don't know if I can manage to look like everything is okay in front of them."

Henry swallowed hard at that admission and held her tighter. The truth was he wasn't sure he could do it either.

"You could always go in before they get up."

"I thought about it, but I really need to see them. I just…"

"You already have one child in danger. You need to hold onto the others as tight as you can."

That was Henry. He knew her so well that he could put words to exactly what she was feeling without her needing to say anything. Sometimes he could put words to her feelings even better than she could.

"Yes. I know it doesn't make much sense."

"It makes perfect sense, babe. We will all eat breakfast together tomorrow. If the kids notice anything and bring it up we'll deal with it then, okay?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Now try and get some sleep, Elizabeth."

They both knew how ridiculous that request was, but Elizabeth didn't say anything about it. In a way it was kind of comforting. Henry was still telling her the same things despite the possible atrocity they were facing.


	6. Chapter 6 - Unusual Brainstorms

Chapter Six – Unusual Brainstorms

Breakfast the next morning was clearly strained despite Elizabeth and Henry's best attempts to make it normal. Both Alison and Jason could tell something was up. Their parents weren't speaking much and they kept glancing at each other. Being touchy was pretty typical of their parents, but they were being way more touchy than usual. Whenever the opportunity presented itself their dad would rest his hand on or squeeze their mom's shoulder. Plus they were almost constantly holding hands. Their mom was acting nearly as bad, but she kept touching _them_. A brush of a hand on one of their arms or backs. A touch on the head. It was weird. Alison was pretty sure she'd caught her mom staring at her or Jason when she thought neither of them was looking. Jason glanced at her, then their parents, and then questioningly back at her again. Okay, she got it. Jason could see something was wrong too, and they couldn't simply let it go.

"Okay, what's going on?" When both of her parents glanced up at her in surprise – and was that fear? – Alison continued, "We aren't stupid. We can see that you're worried about something."

She turned most of her attention to her mother, figuring whatever was causing the worry was coming from her mom's end. It usually was after all.

"I can't tell you, sweetheart," Elizabeth replied.

"Oh come on, Mom."

"I really can't. Details are being heavily restricted."

Elizabeth understood her daughter's frustration, but that didn't change anything. She couldn't reveal anything about the current situation in Africa, not even to admit it existed.

Alison sighed in annoyance.

"Okay, so what can you tell us?"

Elizabeth dropped her eyes and struggled for words. She was not in the right frame of mind to figure out what to say to her children. Henry noticed and handled it for her.

"Some people's lives are in danger, and your mom has to figure out how to save them and bring them home."

"So basically like every other day," Jason said.

Jason's words were actually reassuring to Elizabeth. Perhaps it was because he made her current situation sound so normal. Maybe this situation really was like every other day. It did feel like she was rescuing one person or another near constantly. If she ignored the fact that Stevie was involved this hostage situation was simply routine. Routine was reassuring. Routine she could handle.

"Don't worry, Mom," Alison told her. "You'll figure something out and get them all home."

"Thanks, Noodle."

She offered Alison her best attempt at a smile, which by definition couldn't have really been called one. Even so she felt a little more hopeful than she had last night. She'd handled similar situations before and she could do it again. Henry had to be right. An unexpected solution was out there, and she _would_ find it.

O . o . O . o . O

The hours seemed to be slipping by far faster than they should have been. Elizabeth and her entire staff had been gathered in the conference room since she'd arrived. They'd been throwing ideas back and forth all morning, but she hadn't been paying much attention. Her mind kept going back to what Henry had said. _Unexpected. Look at it from another angle._ Unexpected, unforeseen, not looked for… What could they do?

"Okay," Matt said as he threw his pencil down and shoved his chair away from the table in dramatic fashion.

"Has anyone actually come up with something?"

He received dead silence in reply.

"Oh come on. Somebody has to have had a brainstorm."

"What about the African Union?" Daisy offered.

"We've been over that already," Jay reminded her, barely holding onto his irritation as he did. "This doesn't involve African citizens. They won't get involved."

"But the people who the missionaries were helping are hostages too."

"Doesn't matter. There's only been a threat against our people."

"We've helped them save thousands of African lives before," Matt pointed out. "That could be used for something, right?"

"Doubt it," Blake returned.

"They're not going to go out of their way and put their people's lives at risk to help us, Matt," Nadine elaborated. "The United States might have helped a few times but we've also caused problems for them. They'll see this as our mess, not Africa's."

"So the Secretary can talk to them. She's convinced a ton of people to come around to her way of thinking."

Everyone's eyes turned toward Elizabeth. Matt did have a point. If anyone could talk someone around it was Elizabeth McCord. As ridiculous as it was, this was the best plan they had. They were all waiting to see Elizabeth's reaction, but she still wasn't paying attention to them. A plan was formulating in her mind, and the pieces were slowly clicking into place. The plan would require a lot of details working out and an incredible amount of deception, but it was possible. She would take possible.

"Henry, you're a genius."

"Uh, what?" Matt asked, basically saying exactly what the entire staff was thinking.

They had no idea what Elizabeth was talking about. Unfortunately for them she wasn't about to take the time to explain. For the first time since she'd found out Stevie was a hostage she felt true hope and excitement. She could actually save her daughter. First though she had to get more information and make sure the plan would work.

"Blake, get Admiral Hill in my office immediately. Tell her it's important and I need her expertise."

"Yes, Ma'am. Right away."

Unlike Matt, Blake didn't feel the need to ask for an explanation. He'd learned to trust Elizabeth even when he had no idea what she was doing. This was one of those times, and he was simply going to follow her orders.

"Nadine, I want a list of all foreign military action that's currently taking place in Africa, preferably by Canada or European nations."

"In any specific part of Africa, Ma'am?"

"No. Include everything. I'll narrow down the list later."

Elizabeth stood and paced back and forth, thinking rapidly. She paused and pointed at Nadine again.

"And I need any photos or video we have of this area. Do that first. I'm going to need it when I talk to Admiral Hill."

"Of course, Ma'am," Nadine replied despite the fact that she had no idea what was going on in Elizabeth McCord's head.

"Good. As quick as you can."

Without another word she left the conference room and headed for her office. Once the door closed behind her Matt turned to the remaining staff.

"What the hell just happened?"

"I think she just came up with a plan," Jay replied, still somewhat stunned.

"Then let's go make this plan of hers happen," Nadine informed them. "We have work to do."

O . o . O . o . O

"Ma'am," Blake called as he stepped into her office. "Admiral Ellen Hill is here."

A smile split across Elizabeth's face as she looked up from what she'd been working on.

"Good. Send her in."

Blake had barely turned around when he heard paper rustling followed by what sounded like something being knocked over and a bunch of small objects landing on the floor. He had to force himself not to turn around and look. She wouldn't let him help clean any of whatever it was up anyway. No doubt she would see it as a waste of time at the moment, and time was not something they currently had in abundance. Instead he hurried out of the office to get Admiral Hill.

Ellen Hill stepped into the Secretary of State's office and managed to remain entirely professional despite the vast disarray she saw. She wouldn't have figured the secretary would allow her office to be anything but pristine when she had a meeting. And yet there was very little that could be called pristine throughout the room. It wasn't like Ellen was coming unexpectedly either. Secretary McCord had called this meeting.

The secretary's desk appeared to be covered in papers, some of them rather large, and they were pushing nearly everything else off the desk. That was probably why pens were scattered across the floor. Their container must have been knocked over at some point. A huge stack of files was sitting on a nearby chair, and some appeared to be in danger of joining the pens on the carpet. The secretary's suit coat was inside out and thrown haphazardly across the arm of the couch. Maybe it was all just further evidence of the severity of the situation. She had been unexpectedly called here rather immediately after all. So far the Secretary of State hadn't even looked up from whatever was spread across her desk.

"Madam Secretary," she stated, announcing her presence.

Elizabeth McCord's head shot up, and she waved Ellen forward.

"Let's just skip formalities, alright, Ellen? Right now I need the opinion of someone I trust who has more expertise in battle strategy than I do so I can create a daring rescue plan that nobody will see coming."

A daring rescue plan that nobody would see coming? Ellen wasn't sure what to make of that.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am, but – "

Elizabeth cut her off before she could even finish.

"Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth," Ellen corrected herself. "What is this about? I don't think I understand."

Elizabeth paused for the first time since Ellen had walked into the room. She'd been a compete flurry of motion before that.

"Sorry," she said as she ran a hand through her hair. "I got ahead of myself. We've been working non-stop and finally have the semblance of a plan."

She quickly explained the situation to Ellen, leaving out the fact that her daughter was involved. After that the two of them spent the next hour discussing Elizabeth's plan and pouring over the pictures and maps spread across her desk. When Ellen fell silent and considered everything she'd been told, Elizabeth forced herself to stay still and not start pacing. If Ellen didn't think this plan would work Elizabeth wasn't sure she could come up with another one. She didn't even want to consider that possibility. Plan A had to work.

"I know I still have a lot of details to work out, but do you think it could work?"

"From what I can tell, yes, it's possible," Ellen admitted.

"With minimal hostage casualties?"

"Depending on how it's played, yes. It's an unorthodox plan, but a good one."

The absolute rush of relief that flooded through Elizabeth was enough to almost cause her knees to give out. Her breath left her in a whoosh, and she started laughing. It was the first good news she'd heard in two days. As much as she'd tried to ignore the thought, she hadn't truly believed she could bring Stevie home alive. Now there actually was hope of that.

"Thank God."

"There might be another way to reduce the risk. I can't think of a way to actually do it, but if anyone can, it's you."

Even more excitement ignited inside Elizabeth. If Ellen thought there was a way to make this plan better, _safer_ , then she was going to jump on it. Better and safer were good. They meant a greater chance of getting Stevie home. Anything that increased that chance was worth it.

"How?"

"If you can find a way to separate some of the rebels from the compound you can remove them from play before the fight reaches the hostages."

"Separate some of them," Elizabeth mused. "Like an ambush."

"Exactly. The question is how to get them away from the compound and into a set up because they're not going to show up in an ambush on their own unless you get miraculously lucky."

"I'm not relying on luck for this one. I can't."

She didn't like relying on luck for any kind of rescue, and the thought of doing that when her own daughter was involved nearly made her sick. No, luck wasn't an option. Everything needed to be planned out as close to perfectly as possible.

"Then you're going to have to come up with a way to pull the rebels away."

"Right."

But how? What could draw a group of rebels off without giving them reason to harm hostages? Elizabeth had absolutely no idea, but she would think on it. Her plan of throwing something at the rebels that they wouldn't expect was working for her so far. Maybe a similar strategy would save her again.


	7. Chapter 7 - Trojan Horse

Chapter Seven – Trojan Horse

Nadine stepped into Elizabeth's office with the report the secretary had asked for earlier that day and found Elizabeth staring out the window. They had all been running around like chickens with their heads cut off since this mess had started. To find Elizabeth so still now, especially when it didn't look like she was working, made Nadine rather nervous. She'd never seen Elizabeth McCord give up, but there was a first time for everything.

Unbeknownst to Nadine, Elizabeth was actually working. She wasn't seeing anything outside the window. Her mind was whirling with the makings of a plan to turn one ambush into another.

"Ma'am."

Elizabeth held up a hand, asking Nadine to give her a moment. She just needed a little more time and didn't want to interrupt her train of thought. Having come so far she wasn't going to risk doing anything to jeopardize the chance to complete this idea. After a few minutes of further thought she grabbed the notepad she'd been using all day and started jotting down notes on her second plan.

"Okay," she said once she finished and took a brief moment to make sure she was ready to move on. "Nadine, what do you have for me?"

"The list of European military involvement in Africa, Ma'am."

"Thank you!" Elizabeth exclaimed and threw her hands in the air in triumph. "Your timing is amazing. Bring that list over here."

There ended up being a surprisingly large number of military engagements in Africa. It gave her a lot of options to consider. She could actually look at who would be the most realistic decoy. A few names could be immediately crossed off the list due to the location of the country they were engaged in or the fact that she doubted she could negotiate with them. When she got the list down to two good options and one back up she turned to Nadine again.

"Call the entire staff in please. I think I have enough of an idea now to get this plan in motion."

"That's fantastic news, Ma'am."

Nadine offered Elizabeth a small smile which Elizabeth returned. She was surprised to see tears form in her boss' eyes a moment later. The ramifications of what she'd just managed to accomplish were only now starting to sink in.

"I could actually manage to save my daughter," Elizabeth whispered.

"You will, Ma'am. You've never let anything stop you when something needed to be done."

"Thank you, Nadine."

Elizabeth swiped a thumb under her eyes to brush away any tears that might have slipped past her control. With one deep breath she locked all of her stray emotions away and became the professional Secretary of State again instead of the terrified mother. There was a lot of work still to be done.

"Get the staff, please."

"Of course, Ma'am."

As Nadine left the room Elizabeth returned to her notes to try and figure out how to go about explaining her plan to everyone else.

O . o . O . o . O

Her whole staff was gathered in front of her and waiting expectantly. This was it. Ellen had agreed with her plan, but that didn't mean her staff wouldn't pick it apart. No matter what, this plan had to work. They didn't have another one.

"Alright, guys. We all know military action is going to be the only way to free the hostages. If those rebels see any sign of US military though, the hostages are dead, so they aren't going to see US military. We're going to run a decoy op."

"A decoy op?" Jay asked. "How?"

"By making our soldiers look like they're from another country. One that is already in the region so they won't be suspected. The goal is to get two teams moving in, one from in front and one from behind. The secondary plan is to lure part of the rebel force into a trap. That way we'll eliminate part of the threat before we go in for the hostages."

"It sounds like a brilliant plan," Matt admitted. "But is it even possible?"

"I still have to talk to the French, but yes, Matt, it's possible. If I didn't think it was possible it wouldn't be much of a plan."

Matt shrugged and didn't ask any more questions. The rest of the staff wasn't so easily satisfied. To them the plan sort of sounded like they were going to play dress up and miraculously save the day. It seemed rather sketchy.

"And how exactly are you going to force the rebels into a trap?" Jay asked.

"Through a little bit of spycraft, Jay. We know that the African Union forces won't get involved, but the rebels don't."

"So we make them think that Union troops are on their way," Blake reasoned.

Elizabeth grinned, proving Blake's theory.

"Okay, but how does that trap them exactly?" Jay pressed.

"Because the rebels won't turn down the chance to eliminate a small group of Union soldiers if they think they can easily destroy them in an ambush."

"And then our troops ambush their attempt at an ambush?" Daisy questioned.

"Exactly!"

Jay threw his hands up in exasperation. Daisy and Matt might have been totally on board with the secretary's plan, but Jay wasn't. There were simply too many problems with it. It was all theory only.

"Ma'am, I understand that you're desperate to find a way to save your daughter, but this plan isn't it. There's no way to actually pull it off."

Elizabeth turned furious eyes on Jay. She welcomed dissent and discussion in the group. It helped everyone make better decisions and stronger plans. Basically they were all able to do their jobs better because of it. At a certain point though, dissent wasn't helpful. More importantly it was never helpful when it wasn't respectful. Jay had hit both of those points rather simultaneously. He was lucky that they didn't have the time to argue about his words.

"For both of our sakes, Jay, I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that."

"Then do you want to explain to me how you're going to get the rebels to ambush a group of soldiers that don't actually exist?"

"Through spycraft, Jay." Hadn't they already covered that? "You yourself have proven how far a few well-placed rumors can get us."

"You're going to spread a rumor that a group of Union soldiers are nearby to tempt the rebels."

He sounded incredibly skeptical.

"I still have friends in the CIA. I assure you that they'll know some good people in Nigeria to spread the rumors to. Trust me. Getting the rumors spread to the rebels is the least of my concerns."

"I will have to take your word on that, Ma'am," Jay admitted.

"Admiral Hill has agreed that this plan will probably work, so unless any of you have a better idea this is what we're going with."

Nobody spoke up with any other ideas which officially put any further disagreement to rest. At least Elizabeth had thought it had. Nadine apparently had other ideas.

"Ma'am, I admit this is the best plan we have and probably the only thing that might work, but what about the Nigerians? If we deploy troops to Nigeria even for a rescue mission without their knowledge or consent it will be seen as an act of aggression and possibly war."

"Nadine has a point, Ma'am," Daisy began, "and I assure you that an act of war on Africa, even if it only looks like one, won't play well on any media outlet."

"I will deal with getting Nigerian approval for having US troops on the ground later. After I deal with France."

"And if they happen to, I don't know, say no?" Blake asked hesitantly.

"I'm not going to let them say no, Blake."

No matter what she had to pull out of her sleeve she was going to get all of the pieces to line up. Elizabeth noticed Matt and Daisy looking at each other. They clearly thought she was being ridiculous and rather unrealistic. She honestly didn't care what they thought. This plan was going to work. She wouldn't let anything else happen.

"What do you need from us, ma'am?" Nadine asked in hopes of redirecting the discussion before someone asked a question that would set Elizabeth off.

"I want you to find something to encourage the French to work with us. I'm pretty sure I can get France to cooperate without any kind of incentive, but just in case I can't I want something ready."

"Better to be prepared," Nadine confirmed. "I understand, ma'am."

France wouldn't really be all that difficult since she didn't need to ask much from them. If she couldn't get France's aid she had other options too. There was more than one country currently involved in Africa. Nigeria would be the bigger problem despite her earlier confidence. Without Nigeria's agreement they couldn't bring in troops, and if they couldn't bring in troops the hostages were likely dead.

"While you're at it, Nadine, try to find something for Nigeria too. I want a backup plan handy if my sweet talking isn't good enough."

"Are you looking for some form of bribery or something we have on them to use as a threat or reminder?" Jay asked.

"Either," Elizabeth replied and waved her hand in a clear "it doesn't matter" motion. "Both. Find me everything you can. The more I have to work with the better. I'll sort out the best way to use it after you get it to me."

"We'll get right on it, Ma'am," Nadine told her.

"Do it fast. I want to get all of this set up today, and everyone is more amendable when the request comes during normal hours."


	8. Chapter 8 - Coming Together

Chapter Eight – Coming Together

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes!" Elizabeth exclaimed as she hung up the phone.

If the situation hadn't been quite so serious – and if it wouldn't have been weird – Elizabeth would have started dancing across her office. While there was still a whole list of things she needed to get done, she wanted to take a moment to revel in her victory. They were making progress.

 _I'm coming, Stevie._

Blake had heard her excited shouts from outside the office and couldn't help stepping in to find out what was happening. On principle he needed to figure out what she needed next as well since she had obviously completed her last phone call. He was pretty sure he knew the cause of her shouts, and his eyes were gleaming as he stopped in front of her desk. While he tried for his usual bland and professional expression, a smile kept making its way onto his face.

"Good news, Ma'am?"

She quite literally beamed at him in response.

"Great news, Blake. The French agreed to help us, and they're actually going to offer more aid than I was hoping for."

"More aid?"

"I had just planned on borrowing French military uniforms. They decided to make us look even more convincing by providing a few of their own soldiers and the military chopper to get to and from Africa."

It had actually been amazingly easy to get France's support. Elizabeth had barely even had to try. After she'd described the situation and explained that all she wanted was uniforms and a stopping point between the US and Nigeria, France had been all too willing to help. Elizabeth wasn't sure if that willingness was totally based on friendship and empathy or if it was simply a way to have the US in their debt. She honestly didn't care what the reason was though. With France's agreement one part of the plan was confirmed and she was a step closer to rescuing Stevie and the other hostages.

"That's wonderful, Ma'am."

"It is, and hopefully the Nigerians will be just as easy to convince."

She doubted that would be the case, but at the moment even the thought of a verbal sparring match with Nigeria couldn't bring her spirits down. If everything went as planned they could have a rescue force deployed by early tomorrow, maybe even tonight. There was no way she couldn't be excited about that.

When Nadine stepped into her office Elizabeth's good mood slammed to a halt. Her chief of staff looked far too somber, and that did not bode well. Hopefully whatever problem Nadine was bringing her – because Elizabeth was positive that's what was happening – wouldn't be related to their current situation.

"I'm sorry to ruin the celebratory mood, Ma'am, but another hostage video has just come in."

Elizabeth closed her eyes and forced every other reaction down. She did not want to see that video. She didn't even want to know what was on that video, but she had to watch it. If the situation was escalating she needed to know.

"Alright, show me."

Nadine handed Elizabeth her tablet but remained where she was. She'd already seen the video and had no desire to see it again. Elizabeth noticed that but didn't comment on it. She had to assume that Nadine would have told her if something happened to Stevie in the video. It didn't make her any more willing to watch it though. There had to be a good reason why Nadine was purposefully avoiding watching the video again.

"Ma'am, may I?" Blake asked, motioning toward the tablet.

"Sure, Blake, but I get the feeling this isn't going to be pretty."

"That's alright, Ma'am. I still would like to see it."

He may not need to see the video as much as the secretary did, but he could at least offer Elizabeth a sense of solidarity. Ever since he'd started working for her Blake viewed supporting Elizabeth McCord in any way possible as part of his job. If there was a way that he could protect her then he would do that too. He moved to stand behind her so he could see the video.

Most of the video went the way Elizabeth had expected it would. There were more warnings about how they only had two days left to send the money and if they didn't people would die. The rebels were a little more hostile and demanding than the first video, but that was to be expected. At least she'd expected it to be worse verbally. It had been. Quite a bit worse actually. What she hadn't been expecting, and what was so much harder to face, was the increased physical hostility. The first video had shown some evidence of violence against the hostages. Bruises and cuts mostly, and Elizabeth remembered one hostage had had a bloody nose. That had been it though. This video highlighted violence. For almost five minutes hostage beatings were front and center. Elizabeth didn't even try to keep track of the number of times fists and feet impacted with flesh. She allowed the screams to go right through her and forced herself to watch without flinching or so much as responding. When she saw one rebel carve "two days" into a hostage's back it almost broke her resolve, but she managed to remain outwardly unmoved. Blake didn't do nearly so well. She could see him cringing throughout the beatings, and the moment the knife work started he turned away, hand over his mouth. He was clearly trembling and possibly ready to puke, but Elizabeth didn't comment on it. His reaction was completely understandable. If she didn't have the training she did she probably would have reacted similarly. As if the torture wasn't enough of a warning, the rebels finished the video by saying it would only get worse from here. She wasn't going to let that happen. With one quick jerk she slammed the cover on the tablet shut, symbolically locking the images away with it.

"Blake," she stated without looking at him. "Take a few minutes and then I need you to get the Nigerian Ambassador on the line."

"Y-yes, Madam Secretary," he replied before striding from the room.

Elizabeth didn't show any outward response to Blake's obvious distress, but Nadine's eyes followed him as he left. Personally she was less concerned about Blake's reaction than she was the Secretary's. Elizabeth McCord wasn't showing any emotion, and it was her daughter that was one of the hostages. Nadine knew Elizabeth was very, very good at keeping her emotions and feelings masked, but this good? This good was somewhat unsettling. Scary even.

"Ma'am," Nadine began but was cut off before she could even voice her concern.

"Has the rest of the staff seen this, Nadine?"

"No, Ma'am."

"Good. Let's keep it that way. They don't need to see that."

The absolute pain over what they had just viewed flashed across Elizabeth's eyes. That brief display of emotion was enough to convince Nadine that the secretary was still functioning and still herself. She was simply doing what she had to do in order to remain in enough command of herself to do her job. It was an incredible display really and a talent that would serve her well in the very near future.

"Of course, Ma'am."

"Thank you, Nadine. And if you get the chance would you mind checking on Blake a little later for me?"

"Not a problem."

Nadine nodded her head and left, leaving Elizabeth alone with her emotions. Now really wasn't the best time to process them though. Besides, she would do better if she simply continued working and let the rawness of what she'd seen fade. It hadn't been Stevie, and she would make sure she got troops there before anyone else was harmed. Her time would be best used planning out what to say to the Nigerians.

O . o . O . o . O

The Nigerian Ambassador had easily gotten Elizabeth into contact with his president. Convincing the Nigerian president to let US troops enter the country wasn't as easy. At least he hadn't shot her down outright, and she could tell he was wavering. She knew she would be able to convince him and she had just the tools to do it.

"It's really not going to look good if twelve American aid workers are killed in your country. Not including the fact that some of your citizens are hostages too. They're also at risk."

"I do not want to see your citizens killed any more than I want to see mine, but you are asking to allow military access to my country. Forgive me, Madam Secretary, but the US's track record when it comes to avoiding conflict in other countries isn't very good."

"I understand your concern President Buhari, but I promise you we would only be bringing in 25 US soldiers and a handful of French soldiers who will be there to sell our Trojan horse. This whole plan is designed to avoid as much conflict and as many casualties as possible."

Elizabeth watched his face, reading his expression and trying to determine what her next move should be. He was at the tipping point. She could see that. One more tiny nudge could bring him around.

"Let us in so we can help these people. Please. We can save them and we'll be ridding your country of dangerous rebels in the process. You have nothing to lose."

"Except possible military aggression against my people."

Elizabeth slid her glasses off and moved closer to the computer, meeting President Buhari's eyes as firmly as he could. He may not entirely trust the United States government and their motives, but he did trust her. She was counting on that trust.

"You have my word that the only military action being taken will be against the rebels. We get in. We get our people. We get out."

President Buhari watched her in silence for a moment, clearly considering. Finally he nodded his head.

"I will take your word on that, Madam Secretary. Bring your men in and save both of our people. Just remember that the lives of the Nigerian hostages are a priority too."

Elizabeth wanted to break into a smile right then, but she forced herself to keep a straight face and remain professional.

"Of course, President Buhari. We want to get all of the hostages out of this mess alive, and that's what we're planning on doing," she assured him.

"Then you have my permission to bring your soldiers in, Madam Secretary. I hope your plan works."

"Thank you, President Buhari. I hope it works too."

She ended the call and leaned back in her chair with a sigh. Everything was set. All she needed now was military go ahead. The sudden release of tension caused her to grin and break into laughter. She'd actually pulled it off. Now she needed to call Henry. He was just as worried about getting Stevie home as she was.


	9. Chapter 9 - Final Details

Chapter Nine – Final Details

 _"Elizabeth?"_

She absolutely loved the sound of Henry's voice, even over the phone. It brought her almost as much peace as knowing she had a way to get Stevie home. She couldn't help grinning even though she knew Henry wouldn't be able to see it.

"Yeah, it's me," she confirmed.

 _"Babe, are you okay? Did something else happen?"_

Elizabeth could hear the fear in his voice and was more than happy to put an end to it.

"You can breathe now, Henry. I came up with a plan."

 _"For Stevie?"_ Henry asked excitedly.

"Yes, and it's already in motion."

 _"Ha! Ha, ha! I knew you could come up with something! I knew it! Well done, babe."_

Elizabeth grinned. Henry's excitement was infectious. It was just what she needed as a refueling source after the exhaustion of the last few days.

"You helped me figure it out you know."

 _"I did, huh? Well, whatever it was I said I'm glad I said it."_

"Me too. I already have approval, so it shouldn't be long."

It probably wouldn't be long before Russell showed up in her office either. Even though her plan had been approved she knew he would have some bones to pick with her about it. That was the way Russell worked. Whenever she did something outside the norm he had a problem with it. Putting together a military mission in the State department was definitely outside the norm.

 _"That's fantastic, babe. I feel like I can finally function again. Or at least function a little bit better. I'm not sure I will truly be able to function again until she's back home and I can hold her."_

"I know. I feel the same way."

She had hope now, but there was always the chance something could go wrong with the operation. Until she had confirmation that Stevie was on a plane on her way home some of the fear would remain. Plus, Henry was right. It wouldn't be completely gone until she held Stevie in her arms.

 _"Thank you for letting me know, Elizabeth. I love you."_

"I love you too, Henry."

 _"I'll let you get back to work. Go bring our daughter home."_

"I'll see you tonight, Henry."

She had barely finished putting her phone down when Blake came scurrying into the room. He seemed like himself despite what he'd seen in the video. That might have been reassuring, but the look on his face was not. She knew that expression. It was his "Russell Jackson is here unexpectedly" look. Blake might have been surprised by that, but Elizabeth wasn't. She'd been fully expecting him.

"Russell Jackson is here, Ma'am."

"Of course he is. Go ahead and send him in, Blake."

She didn't have to wait very long for the fun to begin. Russell walked in, absolutely fuming.

"What the hell is this about you setting up a military operation?" he demanded.

Yup, that sounded about right.

"My plan already has presidential approval, Russell. All of the countries involved have agreed. We don't have time to come up with anything else. What is your problem with this plan?"

"My problem is that you are the Secretary of State not the Secretary of Defense! You handle diplomatic solutions, not military ones."

"And the hostage video came to me. It was my job to find a solution to it."

He could rant against her all that he wanted, but she'd done her job. Russell paced back and forth in front of her, clearly agitated. He finally stopped and rested his palms on her desk, leaning over it toward her.

"What I don't understand is why you didn't pass this off to DoD the instant you realized a diplomatic solution wasn't possible."

Elizabeth had to force herself not to roll her eyes.

"My solution still required diplomacy, Russell, and I had a DoD advisor that helped me set this up. She approved of the plan."

"Elizabeth…" he said in exasperation.

"Oh come on, Russell. I had to make sure that getting every hostage out was a priority. We both know that's not always how defense works. This is a good plan, and it's our best shot."

"I can't deny that."

He pulled away from her desk and started pacing again as he rubbed his chin. Finally he sighed and turned back toward her.

"You know, Bess, you absolutely drive me nuts."

"But I get the job done."

Elizabeth's lips quirked into a smile, and Russell threw his hands up. He couldn't deny the fact that she was correct in that assessment. She did get the job done. That didn't mean he was going to completely let her off the hook though.

"Just hope this plan of yours goes off without a hitch."

"I'm hoping the same thing," Elizabeth murmured as Russell left her office.

She really didn't want to think about what could happen if there was a hitch in her plan. Unfortunately there wasn't all that much that she could do to ensure the hostages would be safe. But maybe…

She glanced at the clock. There was still time. Most people wouldn't have gone home from work yet. She still had a chance to get one more thing done. Grabbing her coat, she stepped out of her office.

"Hey, Blake? Do you have anything for me for the rest of the day?"

Blake didn't even need to look at his computer to answer that question.

"No, Ma'am. We cleared your schedule because of the situation in Nigeria."

"Good. There's something I need to go do. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Have a good evening, Ma'am."

O . o . O . o . O

Elizabeth knocked lightly on the office door and poked her head inside.

"Admiral Hill, do you have a moment?"

Ellen Hill glanced up in surprise. About the last person she would expect to show up at her office was Elizabeth McCord. She could have simply called or if she'd wanted a face to face meeting had her assistant call and request Ellen's presence. This meeting had to be special somehow.

"Of course, Madam Secretary. What can I do for you?"

Elizabeth stepped into the room and closed the door behind her.

"The rescue unit deploys for France tomorrow morning, correct?"

Ellen's forehead furrowed slightly. Elizabeth had to have already gotten that information.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"And you know where they are deploying from?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Ellen replied again, but this time slightly hesitantly. "May I ask why you are asking, Ma'am?"

Elizabeth bowed her head briefly, and when she looked up again her professional mask was gone. The conversation would continue outside of the political arena they usually met in.

"I need to be there, Ellen. Before they leave I want a few minutes with the commander."

"Ma'am, our soldiers know how to handle a mission like this. They don't need further directives. You really don't have to worry. They'll get the job done."

"I know. I know, but this is personal. I really need to talk to them," she insisted.

Again Ellen was confused. It was a very strange request, and she wasn't really sure what to make of it. There was no reason the Secretary of State would need to speak to the troops before they left. Not unless there was more to this situation than Ellen knew. She had to admit that was possible. When she'd been working with Elizabeth on the strategy for rescuing the hostages she'd noticed that Elizabeth had been almost nervous about the situation. Ellen had seen Elizabeth deal with similar situations before and she'd never appeared nervous. She'd never been so invested either. Something was different this time compared to all the others. Elizabeth had just said the reason she'd wanted to talk to the troops was personal. What was going on?

"Ma'am… No. Elizabeth," she began, making it very clear that they weren't talking in any professional sense. "What is it about this situation that is holding you so tightly? You're more directly involved than I would expect you to be. And far more adamant."

Elizabeth dropped her head into her hands and rubbed her temples. It was a closed office. Nobody would see in and nobody would be able to hear what she had to say. She could trust Ellen with the truth. At least Elizabeth hoped that she could.

"Because I have a reason to be highly invested in the outcome of this situation," she admitted as she lifted her head to meet Ellen's eyes. "My daughter is one of the hostages."

Ellen's mouth hung open in shock as she struggled to think of something to say in response. Never would she have expected that reason. Elizabeth had been far too calm and collected. If _her_ child had been a hostage in a foreign country she would have been a frantic mess. There was no way she would have been capable of setting up a rescue plan, yet Elizabeth had.

"I… Are you sure?"

"As sure as I can be," Elizabeth admitted, pain clear in her eyes. "Between the videos and travel records it's pretty conclusive."

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"You designed an amazing rescue plan, and it's going to work. Our boys will bring her home." Ellen paused and jotted a few things down on a post-it note before handing it to Elizabeth and continuing, "They'll reassure you of that themselves tomorrow morning.

Elizabeth breathed a long sigh of relief as she looked at the location and time of the deployment. Tears stung her eyes, but she held them back.

"Thank you, Ellen."

Ellen stepped around her desk and knelt in front of Elizabeth's chair so they would be at eye level.

"It's going to be alright, Ma'am."

God, Elizabeth hoped so. At least she would sleep better tonight knowing that there was a way to get Stevie home.


	10. Chapter 10 - Midnight Musings

Chapter Ten – Midnight Musings

Home. It was all Stevie wanted to think about. Home was comforting. If she thought hard enough about it she could almost feel her parents' arms around her and the warmth that being all together brought. Simply the memories of the good times they'd shared as a family eased some of her fears. They made a decent substitute for a cozy blanket. One that she would wrap around herself in the dead of night in the middle of winter. One that made her feel safe. Of course it wasn't really possible to feel safe at the moment. Even her best memories couldn't cancel out the mess that she'd gotten herself into. Thinking about home was about the only thing that brought her any form of hope. She would give just about anything to be back home again with her family. Instead she was trapped here.

Stevie curled into a tighter ball and tried to press further back against the wall. Many of the other hostages had fallen asleep, but sleep wasn't something Stevie could manage. The hard ground was uncomfortable, and the pain wouldn't leave her alone. Neither would the hunger.

How long could someone go without food or survive with minimal water?

Stevie had no idea. In the end she supposed it didn't really matter. In a few hours she could be facing her last day alive anyway. She could actually die here. Time was running out, and Stevie knew the US government wouldn't pay the ransom. The individual families of some of the other aid workers might pay it, but she was pretty sure they hadn't been contacted. How long would it take after time ran out for one of the rebels to get mad enough to kill someone? Not long. At least she didn't figure it would be. Some of the rebels seemed to particularly enjoy tormenting them. Stevie tried to keep a close eye on those ones. She didn't want to find out what they were capable of.

Of course she was probably going to figure that out soon enough even though she didn't want to. However they planned on killing her and the other hostages, she doubted it would be fast. She would die here. _Die._ At twenty it seemed like such a foreign word. She'd never even had reason to consider death before except for the day they'd thought her mom might have been killed in Iran, and even then she hadn't truly thought about it. Now the possibility of death was all too real. She _had_ to think about it. If that wasn't bad enough, she wasn't thinking about how she would go on after her mom died but what _her_ death would be like. Stevie choked back a sob and rested her head on her knees. Her family might never even know what had happened to her. If the video hadn't reached her mother then there was no way her family would realize she was here. She'd hidden what she was doing all too well. Of course even if her mom had seen the video the rebels had made, there was no guarantee she even knew Stevie was one of the hostages. Stevie had no idea if she'd been visible in the video. So either her family wouldn't know that she'd died half a world away or her mother would watch it happen. Stevie honestly didn't know which would be worse. Either way she would be causing her mom more trouble. That was what she'd been trying to avoid by coming here, but apparently she couldn't manage not to cause problems. Her plan had backfired terribly. Now she could still be causing problems after she _died_.

 _I'm sorry, Mom._

She desperately wanted to be able to tell her mom that even though it would be painful. It would be even worse if her mom had recognized her in the video. How would she have even reacted to that? Stevie could imagine how bad she must look. At least she hadn't been one of the people pulled aside to be beaten to prove the rebels were serious about their claims. All she'd suffered was some rough handling. Her injuries were nothing compared to some of the others'. Stevie still felt bad that she'd been thankful not to be chosen. It almost felt like a betrayal to the people she'd come to think of as friends before this mess had started. She should have been horrified or at least trying to come up with a way to help them, but all she'd truly felt was relief. It hadn't been her. She had gotten lucky, just like she had been lucky the rebels hadn't known who she was. Still, even with her luck, she knew she had visible injuries. She could feel dried blood on her face and certain spots were definitely tender. Some parts of her body hurt bad enough that she'd found it was simply best not to move them. On top of the injuries Stevie was a dirty mess. The dust clung to everything and was smeared across her clothes and skin. There might have even been a few remaining tear tracks through the dust on her face. As hard as she'd tried not to cry, a few tears had slipped free when the reality of her situation had become too much. If her mom had seen that it could have broken her. Still, if Elizabeth was put in charge of this situation there was hope for their survival and rescue. Stevie had no idea how her mom might get them out of this mess, but she'd seen her pull off miracles before. There was still a chance. Stevie had to keep reminding herself of that. She could still get home. She could still get the chance to make up for all of her mistakes. It was possible. Maybe…

O . o . O . o . O

Henry suddenly jerked awake, anxious and unsettled. It really wasn't all that surprising considering how he and Elizabeth had been sleeping since finding out about Stevie, but he'd been hoping for a more peaceful rest that night since plans were now in place to get Stevie home safe and sound. Apparently a good night's sleep was not to be his fate. At least Elizabeth was sleeping peacefully if her stillness was any indication. He rolled over, intending on wrapping an arm around her and soaking in some comfort. Instead all he found was empty sheets. Immediately Henry sat up, searching for some sign of her. She definitely wasn't in the bedroom, and the light in the bathroom wasn't on either. Where on earth was she? There wasn't supposed to be any action on the rescue attempt until tomorrow, so he didn't think she would be called in for anything. Besides, she usually told him if she was going in. She had to be here somewhere. Henry dragged himself the rest of the way out of bed and went to look for her.

He didn't have to go very far to find her. Almost right after he stepped into the hallway he noticed the light on in Stevie's room. That didn't bode well. If Elizabeth was in there, and she was the only one who would be, then she was thinking about Stevie. Worrying about her and brooding more likely. She shouldn't be doing that. Sitting in Stevie's room wasn't healthy.

When he got closer he realized that Elizabeth wasn't simply sitting in Stevie's room and thinking about their daughter. She was actually making a pretty big mess. Most of the boxes they had stored away in Stevie's closet were pulled out and opened with some of the contents scattered across the floor. Elizabeth was obviously looking for something, though what she could possibly need to find at almost one o'clock in the morning Henry had no idea.

"What are you doing, babe?" Henry asked as he stepped into the room.

Elizabeth jumped, clearly not expecting anybody else to be awake in the middle of the night.

"Henry! Don't do that!" she hissed.

She glared at him. His antics had almost made her scream, and that would have woken the kids for sure. It would have been hard enough to explain what she was doing up at one AM. There was no way she could logically explain being in Stevie's room. Her kids would suspect something was wrong. Or at least they would ask a whole bunch of questions that she wouldn't be able to answer. Not without revealing what was going on with Stevie at least, and she didn't particularly want to do that. Eventually she and Henry would have to tell them. Even though it wouldn't be quite as traumatizing to the kids to learn about their sister now that a plan was set to rescue her, Elizabeth hadn't figured out how to have that discussion. She would much rather deal with that once Stevie was on a flight home.

"Sorry, babe. I didn't mean to scare you." He moved closer and rested his hand on her shoulder as he got a better look at the boxes. "But, really, what are you doing?"

"Looking for Stevie's rabbit," she replied before beginning to dig through the boxes again.

"Her rabbit?"

She had to be joking. Or maybe he was simply hearing things because there was no way that was what she was doing. It didn't even make sense for her to be digging around for that thing at a normal hour.

"Yeah. That one she carried with her everywhere as a kid. We stored it away somewhere. I just can't find it."

Henry groaned and rubbed his forehead. He had heard right, and she was serious. It was moments like this when he almost questioned whether his wife was sane.

"Elizabeth, it's one AM. Why did you suddenly decide you needed to find Stevie's rabbit now?"

She stilled, apparently coming to understand how strange her behavior must look. There was a reason for it though. A _good_ reason. At least it was a good reason in her head. When she looked up at him again tears were glittering in her eyes.

"I just thought that… that it would be nice to get her something from home when she's rescued. Something that would comfort her. She must be so terrified, Henry."

Oh. He understood now. She must have thought of this shortly after they'd gone to bed. With the rescue force leaving in only a few hours now she almost had to go searching in the middle of the night if she wanted to get something for Stevie in time.

"I'm sure she would really appreciate that, babe," Henry told her as he moved to her side and started massaging her shoulders. "But you're not going to find it in storage."

"What?!" Elizabeth demanded in a panic as she whipped around to face him. "We didn't throw it away did we?"

She looked so utterly distraught that Henry nearly laughed.

"No, babe. Stevie took it when she went to college. It's probably in one of her drawers right now."

Elizabeth deflated like a balloon, clearly relieved.

"Thank goodness." Then her eyes flashed fire and she stood up to swat at him. "And that's the second time you've scared me tonight! Now you have to help me find the rabbit and put all of this away to make up for your bad behavior."

Henry laughed and leaned his forehead against her as she wrapped his arms around her.

"I do, do I?"

"Yes, you do."

"Alright, babe. I'll help you find it. You'll probably stay up all night if I don't."

"At this point if I want to meet the soldiers before they're deployed I might as well stay up."

She was going to need to leave the house by four if she wanted to meet them, and there was no way she would miss that opportunity. Missing a little bit of sleep wouldn't kill her. Besides, for Stevie's sake she would do just about anything. If going another night without rest gave her the opportunity to provide comfort for her daughter then it was worth it.


	11. Chapter 11 - Into Motion

Chapter Eleven – Into Motion

Seeing the hustle and bustle in the hanger as the soldiers prepared to leave for France was a gentle reassurance to Elizabeth. She stood back for a moment, allowing their actions to remind her that these were competent, experienced men. They could succeed in this plan. They could bring her daughter home.

"Ma'am?"

Elizabeth pulled her eyes away from the continuing preparations and found herself face to face with one of the men from Special Forces. She hadn't even noticed him come up to her.

"Admiral Hill informed me yesterday that you wanted to speak to me before we deploy."

"You're the commander of this force?"

"Yes, Ma'am. Captain Jordan Ames of the Marine Corp Special Forces. I want to assure you, Ma'am, that we understand the importance of our mission. My men have the skills to complete it, and we're going to bring our people home."

Elizabeth smiled at him. She knew that they would do everything in their power to make this mission a success, but she had to remind them of how important their mission was regardless. A little bit of extra incentive never hurt.

"Thank you, Captain. I know that you and your men will give your all to this mission, but I'm going to ask you to forgive me for saying what I feel like I must anyway. Do whatever you have to do to save those hostages. I need beyond your best today because I'm leaving one of the most precious parts of my life in your hands."

The captain's forehead wrinkled in confusion.

"Ma'am?"

"My little girl is one of the hostages, Captain. Please, please do everything you can to bring her back to me."

Elizabeth's voice caught slightly, but she managed to keep herself together. She was here mostly in her capacity as Secretary of State so she couldn't fall completely into the role of scared mother.

Ames' eyes widened briefly before his face smoothed over in the traditional military mask.

"Madam Secretary, I give you my word that I will do everything in my power to see to it that your daughter and the rest of the hostages get home safely."

"Thank you, Captain Ames."

His posture relaxed somewhat and he nodded to her.

"Of course, Ma'am. Is there anything else that I can do for you?"

"Ah, actually…" Her hand slipped into her pocket and she caressed the worn fur of the small stuffed animal tucked away in there. "I know it's completely ridiculous and I shouldn't be asking, but when you see my daughter will you give this to her?"

She pulled Stevie's old rabbit out of her pocket and stroked its head. There were so many memories associated with the ridiculous little thing. The rabbit brought a slight smile to her face, but it quickly faded when she looked back up.

"I can't imagine how utterly terrified Stevie is. And I know that she's twenty, but maybe this will bring her some comfort anyway."

Ames grinned and took the small toy from Elizabeth.

"I'm sure it will, Ma'am, and it will remind her that her mother is still looking out for her. I'll be sure she gets it."

"Thank you. I'll let you get back to your men now. Good luck."

"Thanks for the luck,Ma'am, but don't worry. We're marines. We make our own luck."

"I'm counting on you, Captain, and I'll hold you to your word," Elizabeth said as she headed back toward her car.

The rescue mission was almost completely in the marines' hands now, but there were still a few things she needed to do. Rumors weren't going to spread themselves.

O . o . O . o . O

"Good morning, Ma'am," Blake greeted as Elizabeth reached her office. "You look better today."

"Because our marines are in the air, Blake."

"Should I be expecting a call when they reach France, Ma'am?"

"Yes, and I would like to make sure that I'm here when that happens."

"Of course, Ma'am. You aren't expected anywhere except for the situation room once the marines reach Nigeria. Everything else can be handled in your office."

"Good. I have one last thing to set up for this rescue mission, so please make sure I'm not disturbed."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Elizabeth stepped into her office and set her coat and bag aside. Before she did anything else she wanted to let Henry know the marines were on their way. He was just as worried about Stevie as she was and deserved whatever updates she could give him.

She had just finished texting her husband when the door to her office burst open. Daisy strode into the room with Blake right behind her, desperately trying to stop her. He was a little bit late for that.

"Really, Blake?" she asked, rather exasperated.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am. I couldn't stop her."

"Honestly, Daisy? What could be important enough for you to come barging in here?"

Elizabeth doubted it had anything to do with the hostage situation. If it had her entire staff would be here.

"This is important, Ma'am. Roger Burke is rather upset that you keep pushing back your meeting with him. He's threatening to make waves for you, claiming you're ignoring important US interests and are engaging in some sort of hidden business."

"Roger Burke? That pharmaceutical guy who wants to expand business into Mexico, altering a whole variety of laws until they fit his desires while he does?"

"That's… relatively accurate actually," Daisy confirmed.

"So handle him, Daisy. He's the least of my concerns when we're still dealing with a hostage situation in Nigeria."

"I've tried, Ma'am, but unless you want to tell him about the hostage situation I don't have any explanation for why you can't meet with him."

Elizabeth stared at her, utterly amazed that Daisy was really doing this. Was she actually going to have to handle this situation herself? Really?

"Alright, Daisy. It will take another five hours for the marines to get to Paris. Go ahead and have Blake set up a meeting."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"But Daisy," Elizabeth added. "You better make sure that stopping this company from moving to Mexico won't cause any complex problems that I don't know about because I have every intention of telling our dear friend Roger that he can go screw himself."

Elizabeth almost relished the stunned look on Daisy's face. She seemed to have rendered her press coordinator speechless. The expression on Blake's face was rather priceless too. She would peg it as somewhere between scandalized and amused, or maybe a mixture of the two. It was kind of adorable.

"I… um…" Daisy began, clearly somewhat caught off guard. "I will look into that for you, Ma'am."

"Good because I have more important things to do than worry about how to maximize the profits in Mexico, whether it's through legal channels or not."

There was no reason she should even have to say that really.

"And how did this guy manage to get a meeting with me in the first place?" she added.

"Ah, he has a lot of money and friends in high places," Daisy explained.

"Of course he does."

Sometimes Elizabeth really despised DC politics. All too often it was ego and money that ruled instead of actual need or ability. It meant she was stuck dealing with unimportant issues and people playing their own agendas like Roger Burke.

"Ma'am," Daisy pressed. "May I ask what you plan on doing if he won't accept your answer?"

"Do you think I could trade him to the rebels for our hostages?" she asked with an amused grin. "He's got to have a net worth around three million."

"That's actually a very scary proposition, Ma'am. You'd be bringing two morally challenged, profit-centric fools together," Blake told her.

She hadn't even thought of that, and it _was_ a rather scary thought now that she had even though she hadn't been even remotely serious when she'd offered the suggestion.

"God, you're right, Blake. I don't even want to consider the type of horrors that could present. Okay, giving him to the hostages is definitely out. I'll have to come up with another option if he won't accept my decision."

Blake had clearly found that suggestion somewhat humorous, though he'd kept that mostly hidden and had played along in mock seriousness. Daisy, however, didn't find anything funny about the discussion.

"In all seriousness, what do you plan on doing?"

Elizabeth sobered and looked up at Daisy, her expression completely business-like.

"Honestly, Daisy, I rarely have a problem getting people to leave my office when I really want them to go. And now I'm going to use that talent and ask you to leave so I can get some work done on topics of real concern."

"Yes, Madam Secretary," Daisy replied before immediately turning and leaving the office.

Blake watched her go before turning back to Elizabeth. He was the one responsible for keeping her from work. If he had managed to keep everyone out of her office as she'd asked him she could have been much farther along on the final preparations for the hostage rescue plan.

"I'm truly sorry, Ma'am," he began.

"It's fine, Blake. Let's forego the apologies so we don't waste any more time."

"Yes, Ma'am. I will leave you to it."

Elizabeth waited until the door closed behind Blake before picking up her phone. Before dialing she hesitated a moment longer, fully expecting another disturbance to turn up. She appeared to be free and clear though – at least for the moment – so she took the opportunity to get the last piece of the puzzle started.

"Isabelle, I hope you and your Nigerian sources are ready for some good old fashioned rumor spreading because we're about ready to go."


	12. Chapter 12 - The Hardest Part

Chapter Twelve – The Hardest Part

Elizabeth had thought that the day she'd found out Stevie was a hostage in Africa was the longest day of her life, but today was giving that one a run for its money. That was the price of being able to do nothing but wait. Soon after two PM Blake had sent through a call from the marines in France. It had lifted her spirits somewhat, despite the brevity of the call. They had already been in their disguises, which Elizabeth had found somewhat amusing. She'd openly said it was really weird to see them in French uniforms. They had responded that it was even weirder to be wearing them. After that they had taken the time to tell her they were boarding the chopper and would be arriving in Nigeria in a little over five hours before continuing on their way. The call had eased some of the monotony of the day, but all too soon she had been back to near endless waiting.

Around six she'd forced herself to eat dinner, but she hadn't managed to get much down. All she could think about was whether they would be in time. With the time difference it had already been evening when the chopper had landed, and the soldiers had still needed to make their way to the compound. Elizabeth didn't expect them to make contact until early morning. The question was, at what point were the rebels counting three days? She didn't truly know. It was possible that they were considering midnight tonight as the deadline. No new videos had come in that day, which Elizabeth had to view as a good thing. If their time was already up they would have definitely received a video with deaths. Nothing had come though, so they still had time. Or so she was trying to tell herself.

O . o . O . o . O

When Ellen Hill stepped into the Secretary of State's office that night she hadn't been expecting to find Elizabeth McCord asleep on the couch. Based on the upside down binder on the ground nearby Ellen suspected she'd fallen asleep while trying to work. She moved to Elizabeth's side and gently shook her shoulder.

"Madam Secretary."

Elizabeth jerked awake, initially startled and frantic. It didn't take long for her to calm and rub a hand across her face, nearly dislodging her glasses in the process.

"Ellen? What time is it?"

"Late, Ma'am. Or early depending on how you want to look at it. Did you stay here all night?"

"Yes," she replied around a yawn. "I figured there was no point in going home since we have to meet in the situation room eventually."

"We have to meet now, Ma'am. I figured you might like the company on the way over."

Elizabeth got to her feet and ran a hand through her hair in hopes of straightening it. She had no idea how long she'd been asleep or how bad she might look because of her little nap.

"I appreciate that, Ellen." She ran a hand down her shirt and the sides of her pants, trying to smooth everything out. "I don't look like I actually slept in my clothes, do I?"

"You look fine, Ma'am."

"Good. Let's go."

She grabbed her coat and followed Ellen out of the office. Restraining herself to a walk on the way to the situation room was going to be a challenge, but she had to remind herself that getting there faster wouldn't really do any good. She was on the sidelines now. Clearly she was still coming across as rushed and terrified because Ellen was keeping a very close eye on her. She didn't comment on Elizabeth's behavior though. Elizabeth was thankful for that. At least she knew Ellen understood how difficult this was for her.

When they were only a short way from their destination Ellen finally spoke.

"Does the president know?"

She didn't need to be any more specific. Elizabeth fully understood what she was asking: Did he know about Stevie. She doubted Ellen was going to like the answer.

"No, and while he obviously can't take me off this situation anymore, I'm still not going to come right out and tell him."

If he asked she would, but that wasn't likely to happen. Once Conrad did find out he would not be pleased with her. Elizabeth was fully expecting to get her ass handed to her when he realized what she'd done. That needed to wait until after Stevie was safe though. Until then she wouldn't be in the right frame of mind to deal with a lecture. When her fears for Stevie were put to rest she would mentally be ready to handle whatever the president wanted to throw at her.

"He isn't going to be happy when he finds out," Ellen warned.

"Nope, but I don't really care. If it gets those hostages home safely, my daughter included, it will be worth it."

Neither of them said another word, but right before they stepped into the situation room Ellen gave Elizabeth's arm a squeeze for reassurance. It was the best she could offer, and Elizabeth appreciated the gesture.

After a deep, settling breath Elizabeth took her seat. This was it. Within the next few hours she would find out whether her daughter's life would continue or end at twenty. They would be receiving audio updates from the troops on the ground, but she wasn't sure how often they would be coming. The best they would be able to see was satellite surveillance images, which basically showed nothing. At least if Stevie was killed she wouldn't have to see it first-hand. The thought squeezed her heart, but Elizabeth was thankful for the fact anyway. She didn't think she would be able to handle seeing her baby shot.

The crackling of a transmission coming through dragged her out of her thoughts, and she looked toward the front of the room along with everyone else. Conversations would be broadcast to the room via speaker while one of the upper level officers in the room was connected with the troops by headset. He would be able to ask questions and pass along top level decisions if they were necessary.

 _"Troops are currently in place. We have one group hidden near what we hope will be the ambush site, another group waiting out of sight behind the rebel compound, and a few soldiers out front. Scouts are positioned and we're ready to go. Nobody here suspects us. Our allies have been speaking almost non-stop in French since we got here, so our identities seem pretty safe."_

"Any movement from the rebels yet?"

 _"No, sir, but even we've heard the rumors of nearby African Union troops. They're credible enough that we would have gone to look into them if we didn't already know they were false and part of our plan."_

Elizabeth could feel multiple pairs of eyes turn in her direction. Everyone knew she was the one responsible for getting the ball rolling on the rumors. She would have to thank Isabelle for her good work later.

"Let's give it a little while and see if we get anything," Conrad stated.

His command was relayed to the soldiers. While they all waited for some sign that the rebels were going to fall for their trap, discussion began on a plan B. If the ambush didn't work, what were they going to do? It was looking like the only option was a surprise double sided assault. Groups would attack the compound from the front and the back while a smaller contingent got the hostages out during the fighting. It would reduce the numbers in each group dramatically and result in far more casualties than anyone wanted, but they may not have any other choice. With rumors of Union troops floating around the rebels would be more on guard, so any kind of truly surprise assault was not likely to be possible. They would be noticed too quickly. Elizabeth mostly ignored the discussion. She didn't want to think about what would end up happening if they couldn't draw off some of the rebels. For now she simply had to hope her original plan would work. It was her daughter's best chance.

 _"We have movement."_

Elizabeth released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding in a single whoosh and couldn't help grinning.

 _"Ten men leaving the compound armed to fight. It looks like they're falling for it."_

"Good. So now the question is whether to send the other unit in while they're gone," Conrad said.

"That's what they plan on doing once they're sure the rebels are heading for the ambush," the officer communicating with the troops confirmed.

O . o . O . o . O

Waiting for any news on how the mission as going was almost worse than waiting for the mission to begin. Elizabeth had a really hard time remaining seated and staying still. She wanted to be doing something, but her only option was to stare at the screen showing the compound and a few small moving dots. It was incredibly frustrating. She was just about at her limit when news started coming in again.

 _"The rebels in the ambush have all been eliminated. Hostages are being moved now and we're sweeping the building for any remaining rebels."_

A cheer went up in the room. Elizabeth was too relieved to join in, but a brilliant smile graced her face. The words had eased some of the weight that had been pressing down on her for days. They weren't done yet, but the light at the end of this tunnel was visible.

 _"Building is clear. Nigerian hostages have been released, and all American hostages are accounted for."_

Excited chatter began in response to that news. It was the absolute best case scenario. All of the hostages were alive and free. Tears of relief filled Elizabeth's eyes, and she had to struggle not to let them fall. Ellen glanced down the table, met Elizabeth's eyes, and nodded her head very slightly. Elizabeth grinned in reply. Their plan had worked wonderfully.

 _"I also have a special message from my captain. He would like it passed along to Secretary of State McCord."_

"Go ahead. She's here."

 _"Captain Ames would like her to know that he kept his word."_

There was no holding back her tears after that. Elizabeth could feel a few slide down her cheeks, but she simply covered her face with her hands. Instead of trying to stop the tears, she laughed. Stevie was safe now. Captain Ames had her and was going to bring her home.

"Tell him thank you, please," she managed to get out.

"Bess," Conrad asked as her message was passed along. "What was that about?"

She'd known this would happen, but she really didn't care at the moment. Her daughter was coming home. Conrad could yell as much as he wanted.

"Stevie. It was about Stevie."

"Stevie. As in your daughter, Stevie?" Russell asked in disbelief.

Elizabeth understood his reaction. She hadn't believed it at first either. Conrad and Russell had even more reason to be thrown by the news too since they technically should have known about this long before now. Surprise details at the end of a mission were not welcome. That was why the president was supposed to be apprised of a situation early.

"Yes. She was one of the hostages."

"She…" The president's face darkened and then he purposefully looked away from Elizabeth. "Are the hostages on the way home?"

"Yes, sir. They'll be flown back to France for medical attention before continuing on to DC," the communicating officer confirmed.

"Good. Have them contact us when they know their return time to the States. I think that we're done here," Conrad said as he swept his eyes over everyone gathered and then kept them on Elizabeth. "Bess, my office."

His request came as no surprise, and she followed him out of the room without a word. Just based off his body language Elizabeth could tell he was furious. The second they got behind closed doors the storm would begin.

He allowed her to step into his office first. When she was only a few feet inside he closed the door and moved to face her. This was not going to be a discussion with a desk between them. Elizabeth was getting no protection on this one. She deserved to have him in her face.

"What the hell were you thinking?! If your daughter was involved you shouldn't have been a part of any of this, and definitely not in charge of it! You should have passed the situation off to someone else the second you found out Stevie was there!"

Elizabeth met his fury as coolly as she could. She wasn't going to let him shake her. He could rage. His anger would break over her like water on rock.

"I understand that, Conrad, but I couldn't do it. This was my daughter, and I was the best person to come up with a way to save her. My plan worked, sir. _Flawlessly_. You can't complain about that."

"And if it hadn't you would be in far more trouble than you currently are."

"If I had to, I would do it again."

He sighed and shook his head at her. After how long they had known each other he honestly didn't expect anything different from her. This was who Elizabeth was. He simply couldn't be that upset with her over it.

"I know, Bess," he said gently, though with slight exasperation. "Go home and be with your family. Tell Henry the good news."

"Thank you, Mr. President," she replied.

Elizabeth managed to restrain her smile until she had stepped out of Conrad's office. All of the chaos and turmoil of the past few days had been worth it. Now she got to go home and start Henry's day with the best news he could ever hear. Their daughter was safe and on her way out of Africa. Stevie was coming home.


	13. Chapter 13 - The Unbelievable

Chapter Thirteen – The Unbelievable

There was far more activity that morning than Stevie had seen in the last few days, and she had no idea what it meant. It made her nervous though. Whenever something started happening it didn't usually bode well for Stevie or her friends. There was nowhere for her to hide, so the best she could do was keep a close eye on what was going on around her. She couldn't understand what the rebels were saying since they weren't speaking in English, but they sounded excited. Thankfully they weren't paying any attention to the hostages. Instead they seemed to be leaving. Stevie allowed herself to relax as much as she could. Being trapped here had her wound so tight relaxing completely wasn't possible, but any little bit helped.

The room stayed quiet for a long time. None of the hostages moved more than shifting so they wouldn't draw attention. They had all learned that drawing attention here was not a good thing. A few rebels remained, some circling the room and kicking at the hostages' legs as they went by. Stevie kept her legs carefully tucked up against her and her arms wrapped around them. The worst she got was a few lecherous looks and a rifle butt to the shoulder.

Stevie had no idea how long everything stayed that way, but it felt like hours. Then, without any warning, one of the rebels collapsed. Before Stevie could even begin processing that another went down and the room was suddenly filled with soldiers. Terror and shock filled her, and she tried to scuttle farther back even though there was nowhere for her to go. It took a moment or two to realize who the soldiers were. French soldiers. What were French soldiers doing here? Not that Stevie was going to question it. They were here taking out the rebels. If she was about to get rescued she didn't particularly care who was doing the rescuing. It didn't take long for all of the rebels in the room to be killed. She watched wide eyed as part of the group of soldiers separated off and vanished down the hallways leading out of the room. The rest started gathering up all of the hostages. Stevie could have gotten up and gone with them, run out of the room as quickly as she could, but all she could manage to do was stare dumbfounded at everything going on around her. It felt like a dream. Three days of hell and now this…? It was hard to believe.

One of the soldiers came over toward her and held out a hand.

"Come on, Miss. Let's get you out of here."

It wasn't that Stevie didn't know what to do, but she was having a really hard time processing what was going on. She simply stared at him, ignoring his outstretched hand. This could all just be a dream or something her exhausted and desperate mind had conjured up.

"This is really happening?" she asked hesitantly.

A smile broke out across the soldier's face.

"It's really happening. Come on now."

Stevie grabbed his hand and let him pull her to her feet. When she wobbled he steadied her and then began directing her toward the back exit along with everyone else. It wasn't until she took her first step into the sun that she truly believed she wasn't dreaming. This was real. They'd actually been rescued. She almost dropped to her knees and started crying in relief then and there.

Later, when all of the hostages were sharing what little food and water the soldiers had been able to bring with them, Stevie heard her name being called. One of the soldiers appeared to be looking for her, though she had no idea why. She flagged him down anyway.

"You're Stevie?" he asked once he reached her.

"Yeah."

She couldn't help feeling wary. With who she was and after everything that had just happened it was hard not to be. They might have been safe now, but they were still in Africa and she didn't know this person.

"I have something for you."

Before Stevie had a chance to get nervous about what that meant Captain Ames had pulled a small stuffed animal out of his pack. She recognized it immediately.

"Snowbunny!"

Stevie clutched the toy to her chest as tears poured down her face. She knew she was being kind of ridiculous, but she couldn't help herself. The rabbit's presence meant that much to her.

"This was my mom's doing, wasn't it?" she asked once she'd gotten her emotions more under control.

"Yes it was. She met with me before we deployed."

Stevie grinned in response. Not only had her mom managed to find a way to save them, she'd even sent Stevie something to make her feel better. She had no idea how her mom managed to think of everything.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Ah… I don't know if I have the right to ask, but… Snowbunny?"

With a stretch of the imagination he might have been able to figure out the stuffed animal was a rabbit. It had one long ear that was visibly crooked but still close to rabbit-like. The snow part was more of a challenge. There was nothing about the rabbit that was white. It was grey or maybe even tan.

Stevie laughed and then glanced down at the rabbit and began caressing its head. She'd had the stuffed animal forever and had even brought it to college with her.

"I named him when I was really little, so it never felt right to change the name, as silly as it is."

"And it used to be white?"

"A really long time ago," Stevie laughed.

"It looks like it's been through a lot," he replied.

"You have no idea."

Everywhere she'd gone as a child had included Snowbunny. He'd come along in her backpack, the basket of her bike, and had even been buckled into her car seat with her. She'd habitually carried the rabbit around by the ears, and many of her games had involved swinging it in circles or twisting the ears around as tightly as she could. Eventually the strings holding the ears on had started to loosen and break. It hadn't stopped her from mistreating Snowbunny's floppy ears though, and only a short time later the inevitable had happened. When the first ear had fallen off Stevie had had a total meltdown. In order to calm her down her mother had made a big deal out of "admitting" Snowbunny to the stuffed animal hospital – the best one in the world according to her mom. The ear had been sewn back on, and Stevie hadn't noticed how crooked it had become. Unfortunately she hadn't learned her lesson about holding toys by the ears even after the first one had fallen off. The second had managed to hang on for a while longer, but it too had eventually fallen off. She hadn't noticed at first, and by the time she had she'd been getting ready for bed. Once she'd realized the ear was gone she'd absolutely panicked and refused to go to sleep until they found the ear. They had all searched the house, but to no avail. The ear had simply vanished. Little Stevie hadn't been able to accept that and had cried in her parents' arms for hours until she'd fallen asleep. She hadn't been much happier the next morning, but she'd eventually come to love her one-eared rabbit even more.

Now that single ear brought back good memories. Stevie ran the ear through her fingers and smiled. The little rabbit was still a form of comfort to her. It was a little piece of home that she was more than happy to have at that moment. Since she couldn't be home right then she would take what she could get. It would be something to hold onto until she got home and got to see her parents. She didn't care how hard it would be to apologize to them for this; she just desperately wanted to see them. Despite how old she was she still relied on them.

"Um… my mom. Does she know I'm okay?"

Obviously her mother knew that she was here since she'd sent Snowbunny with the soldiers. Her mom had eased some of her fears. Now she wanted to do the same. Her parents were probably terrified, so the least she could do was let them know she was okay. It was also kind of the most she could do, at least until she got home.

"Yes, I'm sure she knows. Our communications officer already reported to the White House that all of you are alive."

Stevie seemed to wilt slightly in relief and then she threw her arms around Captain Ames. She hugged him tightly while both laughing and crying.

"Thank you. Thank you!"

Ames hesitated for a brief moment before he returned her hug for a second.

"You're welcome, Stevie," he replied before pulling away from her. "Now let's get you home to your mom, okay?"

"Yeah."

Stevie wiped her tears away as she followed after Captain Ames while he started rounding up his troops and the hostages. She couldn't help feeling rather elated despite her continued exhaustion. They were going home. She didn't have to be afraid for her life anymore. It was all over, and tomorrow she would see her parents again. In a few hours she would be able to leave Nigeria and all of this behind. More importantly, she was going to be going home. That fifteen hour flight back to the States was going to feel far longer than it had on the way here. There was no question that it would drag on forever and be near torture considering how desperately she wanted to get back. If only she could magically get there without all of the time in between.


	14. Chapter 14 - The Good and the Bad

Chapter Fourteen – The Good and the Bad

Once there was confirmation that the soldiers and hostages were on their way out of Nigeria Elizabeth called President Buhari and let him know they had successfully completed their mission. She'd had to report that there had been a few Nigerian causalities, but they had all occurred before the American troops had arrived. After a mix of apologies and thank yous she hung up and headed for home. It had been a long day and a half basically. She would get some rest and come back in the afternoon. They would know more about the hostages' arrival time then, though Elizabeth fully expected it to be some time in the middle of the night. While that would wreak further disaster with her sleep schedule, at least coming in then would offer some form of protection against discovery by the press. Of course she wouldn't put it past some of them to notice she was leaving for somewhere in the middle of the night. She did that so often that it didn't even sound unusual anymore, but she understood that midnight trips tended to inspire ideas of secret plots, whether real or imagined. Whatever the press did, they did though. She wasn't going to ask the convoy to change their arrival time. She wanted Stevie home as soon as possible. Sooner really.

It was still early when she walked out the door, and she couldn't help hoping that maybe she would catch Henry before he left for work. She could definitely use his stability right then. As tired as she was, she still felt jittery. Her patience had been on its last strands hours ago. She needed him to give her enough of a boost so she could last until Stevie got home.

She wound up getting lucky and caught him just as he was leaving for work. Before he had the chance to do anything she caught the lapels of his jacket and leaned into him.

"Do you have a minute?"

"One or two," he answered as he wrapped his arms around her. "Are you alright, babe?"

He had to admit that her behavior was making him think that something had gone wrong on the rescue mission. She wasn't near tears though, so he had to hope nothing too terrible had happened. It was also possible that her clinginess was because of exhaustion. She hadn't even made it home last night. Henry couldn't even guess how many hours of sleep she'd actually gotten in the last few days, but he knew it was a low number.

"Yeah. I'm just tired and impatient." She pulled far enough away from him that she could meet his eyes. "They got her, Henry. She's okay and on her way to France with the other hostages."

Henry's eyes lit up and he kissed her fiercely. That was about the best news he could have possibly gotten. It didn't exactly explain what had his wife so out of sorts though. No matter how exhausted she was, this news should have brightened her spirits considerably.

"That's fantastic, babe! I knew you could come up with some way to bring her home."

"I know." She offered him a bright smile full of the excitement he thought she should have, but then it slowly faded away. "But it's a long way home. I want to meet her in France so bad, Henry."

"And you can't because of the flight times," Henry replied as understanding dawned on him.

He had no idea how long it would take to get from Nigeria to France, but he suspected it was shorter than the eight hour flight from the States to France. If Elizabeth went she and Stevie could wind up passing each other in midair over the Atlantic. That wouldn't help either of them.

"Exactly! And even though I keep reminding myself that she would get there long before I would even if I left right now it's hard to accept that all I can do is sit here and wait."

Henry pulled her against his chest and stroked her hair in an effort to soothe her.

"I know, but she'll be home before you know it, babe, and then you can never let her out of your sight again. For a few hours at least."

Elizabeth laughed lightly. That was pretty much exactly what she wanted to do, and she knew Henry felt the same way. They were both likely to smother and over-parent Stevie when she came home. Elizabeth signed and snuggled further into Henry's arms.

"I have my own damn plane and I still can't get to my daughter. It's incredibly frustrating."

"You already got to her, babe. By getting help to her. That has to be enough."

"Yeah… Henry, I'm sorry. I'd wanted to come home and make this the best morning for you by telling you Stevie was safe, and here I am falling apart and seeking comfort from you instead."

"You're not falling apart, Elizabeth. You're exhausted and emotional. That's understandable. Besides, you managed to make my morning pretty amazing anyway, and you know I don't mind comforting you. It always comes for free."

Somehow he could always manage to make her feel better. She tipped her head up and gave him a quick kiss.

"God, I love you."

Henry laughed and gave her a kiss of his own.

"That's good because I love you too."

O . o . O . o . O

Elizabeth managed to get a few hours of sleep before returning to the office early in the afternoon. She found a message from Russell Jackson's office waiting for her when she arrived. Apparently while she'd been at home word had come in of the hostages' return time. As she had suspected she was in for another late night. The military plane was scheduled to land after three am. Russell's message made it rather clear that since this had been her operation from start to finish (even though it shouldn't have been – she could always count on Russell to continue bringing that up), she was the one in charge of contacting all of the families. She didn't particularly mind that though and would have asked to do so anyway.

"Blake," she called out.

It only took a moment for her assistant to respond to her call and step into her office.

"Will you get me a list of phone numbers for our hostages' families? I need to give them an update."

"It's already on your desk, Ma'am. When I saw Mr. Jackson's message I figured you would need it."

"Oh." She dug through some of the papers on her desk and quickly found the list. "Thank you, Blake. And speaking of Russell's message… Do we know anything about the medical evaluation and treatment the hostages received in France?"

From what she understood of the message the treatment had been brief and more would likely be necessary once they reached the US. It wasn't reassuring and made her want more details on Stevie's condition. If her daughter was badly hurt she would rather find out now than when Stevie walked off the plane. Of course she had to accept that no matter what she wanted she would probably learn nothing until she saw Stevie.

"No, Ma'am, but I can look into it if you would like."

"No, they probably won't tell me anything anyway."

"I'm sure Stevie is alright, Ma'am."

"I hope so, Blake. I hope so."

Once Blake left Elizabeth decided that she would call Henry before she started on the list of families. There was more than enough time to get through all of them, and she would get her staff to help with the calls too. Nobody needed to hear from her personally since there was good news involved. She glanced at the clock and confirmed Henry was on his office hours. Since it wasn't a class she wouldn't feel bad about interrupting even if he was with a student. It turned out that she wouldn't be interrupting anything.

"Hey, Henry."

 _"Hey. More news?"_

"Yeah. The plane should be getting in between 3:30 and 3:45 tomorrow morning."

 _"Good. I can't wait."_

Elizabeth hesitated for a brief moment. She didn't want to destroy Henry's excitement, but she couldn't let him keep thinking that he was going to meet their daughter when she got off the plane. It just wasn't a possibility.

"Henry, you can't come to the airport."

The line was dead for long enough to make Elizabeth slightly uncomfortable. She'd known he wouldn't take that news well, but she had expected some kind of response.

 _"What are you talking about?"_ he finally asked.

She could hear the anger simmering just below the surface. If someone had told her she couldn't come she would have been angry too. Even though she empathized with him it didn't change the fact that he shouldn't come.

"We've managed to keep Stevie's involvement in this a secret so far, and I really want to keep it that way. For Stevie's sake. I have a legitimate reason to be at the airport regardless of whether our daughter is there, but you don't. If you come…"

"The press would realize something was up."

He sighed, sounding completely miserable. While he understood her reasoning that didn't mean he had to like it. This was his daughter and he should be there to take care of her. Even so, he was going to have to accept Elizabeth's decision. It was the best thing for Stevie.

"I'm sorry, Henry."

And she was. If there was a way to get him there without the risk of alerting the press she would, but that just wasn't a possibility. He was going to have to do what she couldn't: Wait until Stevie actually got home.

 _"I get it, babe. I don't like it, but I get it. Just promise me that you'll take care of her. Despite the politics involved in this."_

He knew Elizabeth well enough to know that she would put their family above political image, but he still wanted to hear confirmation from her. It would reassure him despite his frustration with the situation.

"Don't worry, Henry. I'm only going to be the Secretary of State until Stevie gets off that plane. The minute she sets foot on the tarmac I'm just mom."

It would be hard enough for her to maintain her professionalism until she saw Stevie. Once she did there would be no chance of being anything but a mom. She had every intention of gathering Stevie into her arms the moment she saw her and never letting go. It had been weeks since she'd seen her little girl, and she knew part of what Stevie had been through. Those two things together made her desperate to hold her child. She was going to do everything in her power to be the source of comfort Stevie needed after the trauma she had faced. She was going to be mom.


	15. Chapter 15 - Repercussions

Chapter Fifteen – Repercussions

When her car stopped in the back of the military hanger Elizabeth had to force herself to be still even though all she really wanted to do was race out of the car and join the other nervous parents and families. That simply couldn't be her role yet, as much as she wanted it to be. One of her security guys opened her door and poked his head in the car.

"We're here, Ma'am."

"I know. Just give me a minute."

She took a deep breath and forced herself to push thoughts of Stevie to the back of her mind for a little bit longer. It wasn't like there was anything she could do for her daughter at the moment anyway. Her intervention would not make the plane arrive any faster. Once she was sure she had her emotions as under control as it was possible for them to be she stepped out of the car. Her eyes immediately swept the hanger and she was pleased to see there was no media presence. It looked like her team had done an incredible job keeping the whole situation under wraps. The parents and spouses of the other hostages looked as impatient and nervous as Elizabeth felt. Some were pacing around, others clinging to each other, and even more simply remained still with their eyes glued to the door of the hanger, hoping for a glimpse of the plane that would bring their loved ones back to them. Most of them didn't seem to notice her arrival or if they did they didn't care. Elizabeth was thankful for that. It would be even harder to keep up the act of being here only as Secretary of State if one of them felt the need to talk to her. Remaining completely unnoticed wasn't going to be her fate though. When she saw one of the men approaching her she had to mentally prepare herself to face him.

"Secretary McCord?"

He sounded so nervous. Elizabeth offered him the best smile she could come up with and a slight nod of her head.

"Thank you for finding a way to get my wife home," he told her.

That time she didn't even need to force a smile. It came automatically.

"You're very welcome."

"I'm sorry to ask, but nobody will give me an answer. Do you know when they're supposed to be landing?"

"I would say within the next half hour or so."

She could see the relief wash over his face as he grinned at her. After a quick thank you he moved back to the other waiting family members, and Elizabeth was left to wait as patiently as she could on her own. That encounter hadn't been anywhere near as bad as it could have been. She hadn't been waiting very long when her phone rang. The news she received was enough to make her feel weak. After she hung up she took a moment to enjoy the news herself before sharing it with the others.

"Alright, everyone," she called out and immediately had heads swinging in her direction. "I just got word that the plane has landed. They're taxiing down the runway toward us now."

The hanger had been relatively quiet before she'd spoken, but once she was done chatter and excitement filled the room. It was to be expected, and Elizabeth was feeling the same way herself. The plane couldn't taxi fast enough for her liking. When it pulled in the military workers in the hanger held the families back. Elizabeth forced herself to stay where she was as well. It was hard though, and it was even more difficult once the steps were in place and the door opened. There was nothing she wanted more than to run up the steps into the plane and find Stevie. She waited though, tense as a drawn bow as people began filing off the plane. At one point she saw Captain Ames, but the best she could do was mouth thank you to him from where she was standing. Once all of this was over she would find a way to thank him properly. Right now all she could focus on was Stevie.

Stevie was the last hostage to emerge from the cabin. When Elizabeth saw her, bruised and battered with a brace on her wrist but holding tightly to a small stuffed rabbit, she automatically took a step forward. Stevie stood at the top of the steps looking shell shocked and unsure what to do. Then she spotted Elizabeth and it took only a moment before she started racing down the steps so fast Elizabeth was afraid she would fall.

"Mom!" Stevie cried out.

After that one word getting to Stevie was all that mattered to Elizabeth. Mom was exactly what she was. Stevie left her bag on the ground and raced toward her mother. Throwing all other concerns aside Elizabeth ran to her daughter, meeting her halfway and immediately folding Stevie into her arms. Tears were streaming down both of their faces as Stevie wound her arms around her mother and held on for dear life.

"Mommy," she whimpered.

"Shh, baby. I'm here. It's okay now. You're home, and I'm right here."

Elizabeth rubbed Stevie's shaking back and stroked her hair. She couldn't resist planting a few kisses on the side of her daughter's head. Finally, finally she had her little girl back with her. She was a little bit worse for the wear, but they would deal with that later. All Elizabeth wanted to do in that moment was to hold Stevie for all she was worth. She didn't even notice the heads turning in their direction. Clearly Stevie's identity had remained secret until the end.

Eventually Stevie pulled out of the hug, but she didn't go far. She simply grabbed the edges of her mom's blazer. Her face was twisted in agony, and Elizabeth could easily read the guilt there. It pierced her heart.

"Mom, I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

"Stevie…"

Stevie was too frantic to get out what she needed to say to let her mom speak and simply cut her off.

"I couldn't even get out of your way in a country 6,000 miles away. I screwed up again, and I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to cause you more problems. Please believe me!"

Elizabeth had no idea what Stevie was talking about, but what her daughter was saying scared her. This had to be coming from somewhere. She needed to find out where it was coming from, but that wasn't important right now. Her daughter was not in a good place. Calming Stevie down and taking care of her was the priority. Elizabeth made a mental note of what Stevie had said so she could deal with it later and then ignored it all.

"Shh. Shh, Stevie," Elizabeth soothed as she cupped her daughter's cheeks. "None of this is your fault. Okay? I'm not mad at you."

Stevie tried to look away, but Elizabeth held her firmly.

"Stevie, look at me." When Stevie's teary eyes met Elizabeth's, Elizabeth continued. "I don't blame you for any of this."

"You should. I've caused you so many problems…"

"No, Stevie. I think I know what I should and shouldn't be feeling, and trust me, baby, I don't blame you for this."

Stevie began trembling and soon enough tears were dripping down her face again. Elizabeth pulled Stevie back into her arms.

"Come on, sweetheart. You've been through a lot. Let's get you home, okay?"

"Okay," Stevie whimpered.

Elizabeth ushered Stevie into the back of the car and slid in next to her. She draped her arm around Stevie, and her daughter settled her head onto Elizabeth's shoulder. Stevie was an absolute mess and clearly more than just physically. Hopefully after she got some rest she would be in a better frame of mind to help Elizabeth understand what was going on and how to help her.

"Mom?" Stevie squeaked after they'd ridden in silence for a while.

"Yeah, baby?"

"Dad's going to kill me."

Elizabeth had had her cheek resting on top of Stevie's head, but at those words she jerked upright. She would have never expected her daughter to say something like that. Henry and Stevie were so close!

"No. No, baby. Your dad is just as worried about you as I am. He can't wait to have you home, safe in his arms."

"He's still going to be mad at me."

"We're not exactly happy you decided to suddenly go to Africa without telling us, but we're more worried about what you've been through right now."

Stevie looked down and fingered the brace on her left wrist before reluctantly lifting her head to meet her mother's eyes. She looked like she was about to be sick. When she didn't say anything Elizabeth caressed the back of Stevie's hand.

"What is it, Stevie?"

"The rebels that were holding us… I-I'm glad they're dead. Is that wrong?" Stevie clutched at her mom's hand before continuing. "It feels like it should be wrong. I mean, I'm _happy_ someone is dead. I know that should bother me, but I don't feel any differently. I saw them killed right in front of my eyes, and it doesn't bother me. I'm not upset about it at all. There's something wrong with that, isn't there?"

Stevie's speech nearly ripped Elizabeth's heart apart. She wanted to turn back time and save her child from all of this pain. That wasn't a possibility though.

"No, baby. There's nothing wrong with feeling that way. They were trying to kill you. The only options were their deaths or yours. It's perfectly normal to be glad the people torturing you and threatening to kill you are dead."

"I know, but I still saw them die."

"Sweetheart, there weren't any other options. Not if we wanted to save all of you. Their choices led to their deaths. Do you understand me?"

"Yeah."

"Good."

Elizabeth kissed Stevie's head and pulled her close again. Stevie might not be truly upset by the rebels' deaths and what she'd been forced to witness but once some time passed Elizabeth knew that Stevie would probably be affected by it anyway. Once some of the numbness and shock wore off the true reality of what had happened would set it. This whole experience would leave a mark. Elizabeth just had to hope that that mark wouldn't be too deep.


	16. Chapter 16 - In Our Arms

Chapter Sixteen – In Our Arms

Henry jerked awake and felt his book slide off his lap. He slid his fingers under his glasses to rub at his eyes before glancing at the clock. It was after four. Elizabeth and Stevie should be home. Henry had tried to stay awake but apparently he'd fallen asleep and missed them. He threw the blankets off his legs and ran out of the room. Now that he was awake he was going to find his daughter and stay at her side. Elizabeth was already there. He found her curled up on Stevie's bed. Stevie was asleep with her head resting next to Elizabeth's hip and her arm thrown across her mother's lap. His wife was completely focused on Stevie and continually carded her fingers through their child's hair. It nearly broke Henry's heart. Just one look at Stevie told him she'd been through a terrible ordeal, and he could see that when she was asleep. It scared him to think about what he would find once she was awake.

He moved to Stevie's bed and stroked the back of his fingers across his daughter's cheek. Elizabeth watched him, and when he looked up he could read the pain in her eyes all too clearly.

"She looks so thin," Henry murmured.

"I know."

"Did you get her to eat before she fell asleep?"

"No. I barely managed to convince her to stay awake long enough for me to clean her up with a wash cloth and get her into pajamas."

Elizabeth looked back down at Stevie. With most of the dirt gone the bruises were even clearer. She hated seeing the dark marks marring her daughter's face and arms. Some of the marks made it obvious that Stevie had been grabbed roughly at some point.

"What happened to her arm?" Henry whispered.

"The doctors in France thought her wrist might be broken. We'll have to get x-rays tomorrow."

"And get some good food into her."

"That too. I'm going to take tomorrow off so I can get her some help."

Stevie was definitely going to need psychiatric help after this on top of medical help. Elizabeth was going to make sure she got whatever she needed. More importantly she was going to be there as someone her daughter could talk to.

"Do you want me to stay too?"

"No. We'll be alright for a few days. Once I have to go back you can stay home. That way she'll have someone with her for longer."

"Okay."

"Henry? Do you think you could handle telling Jason and Alison tomorrow?"

Doing that was simply beyond Elizabeth's ability at the moment. She desperately needed sleep, and her mind was far too overtaxed to handle anything else, especially if it involved seeing her children in pain.

"Sure, babe."

That was not going to be easy, but for Elizabeth's sake he was willing to do it. The kids needed to know what was going on with their sister. Stevie wasn't going to be able to simply get back to her life after this. She would have a long road to recovery, and everyone in the family needed to know that so they could help her.

Henry settled himself onto the edge of the bed and wrapped an arm around Elizabeth. He couldn't help resting his other hand on Stevie's arm. Touching her made the fact that she was home feel more real.

The three of them stayed together in Stevie's room for nearly a half hour before Henry finally dragged Elizabeth away. They both needed to go to bed. There was nothing they could do for Stevie right now, and if something happened their room was close enough that they would be able to hear it. Elizabeth left Stevie's room with only a bit of convincing, but she wasn't at all ready to get some sleep.

"Henry, when Stevie got off the plane she kept apologizing to me," she explained once they'd entered their own room. "She said she couldn't even get out of my way in another country."

She was about to ask him what he thought that meant and whether it was her fault that Stevie had left –Did her daughter really think she was in Elizabeth's way? – when she saw Henry pale. That meant something.

"What, Henry?" she demanded.

"I… That might be my doing."

Elizabeth's eyes widened in shock. What did he even mean by that?

"Henry?"

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. The second she'd repeated Stevie's words he'd recognized them. They'd been said in a time of frustration when his control had been slim. He hadn't expected those words to come back and bite him. They had, however, and now he was going to have to explain his actions to Elizabeth.

"I might have lost my cool with her the day you were made acting president."

"You lost your cool."

That scared Elizabeth enough on its own. Henry rarely lost his cool, and it was almost never with his children.

"I yelled at her for making more bad choices. At one point I told her to get out of her own way. And yours."

Elizabeth couldn't believe this. There was no way she could forget that day, and she clearly remembered warning Henry not to antagonize Stevie about being found with Harrison. He apparently hadn't listened to her, and what he'd said had stuck with Stevie. It had stuck with her so much, in fact, that she'd gone to Africa. Africa!

While the ordeal of the last few days was over, neither of them had recovered from the strain. They were both exhausted. Their tempers were on a hair trigger, and those triggers had been pulled.

"You told her what?!"

"It was after Harrison and that whole mess with the drugs! I didn't expect it to send her running halfway across the world!"

"I told you not to push her buttons! I told you! Why didn't you listen to me?"

She was waving her hands around and pacing the room, clearly agitated. Her agitation and anger were clearly directed at him too. Most of the time Henry could let Elizabeth's anger roll right off him until she'd gotten it out of her system. Today he couldn't handle that.

"She had heroin in her pocket, Elizabeth! She needed to start making better choices. We both agreed with that."

"Yes! But why didn't you wait for me? Maybe if you had we wouldn't be in this situation!"

She'd planted her feet right in front of him and was yelling directly at him, nearly right up in his face. Henry wanted to strike back at her, but he couldn't do it. He blamed himself enough for what had happened. The last thing he wanted was to continue pushing this argument toward who was to blame, especially since he didn't truly believe Elizabeth blamed him. She was just tired and upset. Besides, he knew full well that she could easily start turning the blame on herself, and worse, she would actually believe she was to blame.

"You really want to start tossing around blame on who pushed our daughter into getting stuck in a hostage situation?" he asked.

Elizabeth winced and looked away. No, that was not what she wanted to do at all. She was already regretting what she'd said. Nobody was to blame for what had happened, not even Stevie. She rested her hands on Henry's chest and leaned forward to press against him.

"No. I don't want to do that at all. I'm sorry, Henry."

He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She settled happily against him with a sigh.

"You know I don't blame you for Stevie leaving, right?" Elizabeth asked.

"I know you don't, babe," he replied before kissing her head.

Elizabeth stayed right where she was for some time, soaking in Henry's love and trying to calm down. It worked rather well, but she still needed some reassurance from him. Thankfully he was always pretty good at that.

"Henry? Stevie's going to get through this, right?"

"Yeah, babe. We're all going to get through this."

O . o . O . o . O

"One excellently made grilled cheese sandwich for you, and one for me," Elizabeth told Stevie that afternoon.

Stevie laughed lightly and took the plate from her mother. Her description was completely accurate. Both sides were perfectly brown.

"It always amazes me that you can make such an amazing grilled cheese and everything else you try fails so miserably."

"Grilled cheese is easy… as long as you pay close enough attention to it."

"Meaning you've probably burned a bunch of them."

Stevie grinned at her mom, totally ignoring the look her mother was shooting her and plucked a piece off her sandwich before popping it into her mouth.

"Just eat your sandwich," Elizabeth nearly growled.

"Okay, Mom," Stevie replied rather sarcastically.

She did, however, start eating. As she did she shifted a bit closer to her mom so they were touching shoulders. It was incredibly comforting. Elizabeth didn't mind at all. She liked the physical reassurance as much as Stevie did. At least Stevie was eating and had moments where she was acting like herself. It gave Elizabeth hope that at least her little girl was doing alright.

Once they were both done with their sandwiches Elizabeth patted Stevie's knee.

"Come on. Let's get some ice cream."

Stevie laughed again and followed her mom into the kitchen. Of course her mother wanted ice cream. She barely needed an excuse for making herself a bowl, so having a reason like getting food into Stevie pretty much guaranteed ice cream was going to come out. Stevie wasn't about to turn down ice cream though. She loved it nearly as much as her mother did.

They had just finished scooping out bowls when the front door opened. Both Elizabeth and Stevie glanced up in surprise. It was too early for anyone else to be home. At least not if they were coming home at a normal time.

"Henry," Elizabeth said in surprise. "You're home early."

Elizabeth was so focused on Henry that she completely missed Stevie's sudden tension. The last time Stevie had had a real conversation with her father had been before she'd left. He'd been upset with her about making bad choices then. Now she'd made an even worse one. Despite what her mom had said about her dad not wanting to kill her after the mess she'd caused them she still was afraid of how he would respond to her disappointing him so terribly. She couldn't face him. She couldn't even look at him, so she dropped her eyes toward the ground.

"Yeah," Henry said as he dropped his bag in the office and started toward them. "I cancelled my office hours for the day. Figured being home was more important."

His eyes were on Stevie, and he noticed right away that she wasn't looking at him. She did, however, look better than she had last night. At least it let him breathe a little bit easier.

"Come here, sweetheart."

He pulled her into a hug, holding her close. This was what he'd been waiting for, a chance to hold his daughter and prove to himself that she was alright. She was tense in his arms though. Even when he stroked her hair she didn't relax any.

"I'm so glad you're home, sweetie."

A single sob escaped Stevie, and Henry tightened his arms around her in response.

"Dad… I…"

"Shhh, just let me hold you for a minute."

Tears slid down Stevie's cheeks, and she buried her face in her father's chest. Since the moment she'd first faced the rebels this was exactly what she'd wanted, to have her parents there to protect her. It felt so good to be in her father's arms even if it did make her feel even guiltier about disappointing him. When he finally let her go she rubbed at her eyes and nearly curled in on herself.

"Dad, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to cause Mom more trouble. I swear!"

"I know, baby," Henry assured her before reaching out to hold her face in his hands and kiss her forehead. "And I'm sorry too. When I'd said what I did to you I'd wanted you to wake up and realize you needed to start making better choices. I'd never wanted your wake-up call to be so harsh, and I'd never meant to send you away."

While Stevie looked absolutely shocked by Henry's words, Elizabeth wasn't surprised at all. She knew her husband would have never wanted their daughter to go through what she had no matter how mad at her he might have been. When Stevie's breathing hitched and she appeared to be getting even more upset Elizabeth started rubbing her shoulders. Stevie tried to choke back tears and scrubbed a hand over her eyes. It took a little while, but she finally managed to pull herself together enough to speak.

"You mean you forgive me?" she asked incredulously. "Even though I caused more problems for both of you than I ever have before?"

Elizabeth couldn't help herself. She grabbed Stevie's head and pressed a fierce kiss to her daughter's temple. Once she released Stevie Henry took over. He wrapped his arm around Stevie and pulled her against his side.

"Of course, sweetheart," Elizabeth told Stevie. "No matter how big the mistake we'll always forgive you."

Stevie bit her lip and glanced from her mom to her dad.

"Really?"

"Really," Henry promised and planted a kiss on top of her head. "And this wasn't totally your fault, Stevie. Going to Africa without warning wasn't exactly the best choice in the world…"

Stevie dropped her gaze, shame creeping up on her again.

"But," Henry continued in a much softer voice. "Nobody could have predicted a hostage situation. This was a mess of bad circumstances more than bad decisions."

"It was still a bad decision though," Stevie admitted.

"It was," Elizabeth confirmed.

"But you've learned from it," Henry added. "And we're just glad you're home."

Stevie twisted around and wrapped her arms around her father. His words had allowed some of her guilt to trickle away, and she felt so much lighter.

"I love you, Dad."

"I love you too, baby girl. I'm so glad that you're alright."

Stevie smiled slightly and relaxed completely against him. All of her fears of disappointing her parents were gone. They weren't mad at her. Now she could completely focus on seeking comfort from them, which was what she'd wanted even before she'd gotten home. She might be twenty years old, but she still believed there was very little they couldn't fix. They would help her and make everything right again. Once they did Stevie promised herself that she would start making better decisions and would make everything up to them. Everything. They more than deserved that.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Well, that's it! I hope you all enjoyed it!_


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